United States Environmental Protection Agency Washington, D.C. 20460 Solid Waste and Emergency Response(5101) EPA500-F-99-146 June 1999 www.epa.gov/brownfields/ SEPA Brownf ields Assessment Demonstration Pilot Warren, OH Outreach and Special Projects Staff (5101) Quick Reference Fact Sheet EPA's Brownfields Economic Redevelopment Initiative is designed to empower states, communities, and other stakeholders in economic redevelopment to work together in a timely manner to prevent, assess, safely clean up, and sustainably reuse brownfields. A brownfield is a site, or portion thereof, that has actual or perceived contamination and an active potential for redevelopment or reuse. EPA is funding: assessment demonstration pilot programs (each funded up to $200,000 over two years), to assess brownfields sites and to test cleanup and redevelopment models;job training pilot programs (each funded up to $200,000 over two years), to provide training for residents of communities affected by brownfieldstofacilitatecleanupofbrownfieldssites and preparetrainees for future employmentintheenvironmental field; and, cleanup revolving loan fund programs (each funded up to $500,000 over five years) to capitalize loan funds to make loans for the environmental cleanup of brownfields. These pilot programs are intended to provide EPA, states, tribes, municipalities, and communities with useful information and strategies as they continue to seek new methods to promote a unified approach to site assessment, environmental cleanup, and redevelopment. BACKGROUND EPAhas selected the City of Warren for a Brownfields Pilot. The city of Warren (population 50,793) is a state-recognized distressed area with an unemployment rate of 17.4 percent and a poverty rate of 47 percent. During World War II, the city's steel mills produced 10 percent of the nation's steel. The 1970s collapse of the steel industry, however, resulted in an economic recession from which Warren is now starting to rebuild. The city designed two redevelopment plans to revitalize Warren's economy—the Crosstown Corridor and the River Edges-New Environment for Warren (RENEW) plans. The plans call for redevelopment of two industrial/commercial corridors that contain 23 brownfields sites and that intersect near the center of the city. The Pilot targets the RENEW Plan corridor, a five-mile-long corridor that contains a mixture of residential, commercial, and light manufacturing properties including three unregulated dump sites and a former power plant. PILOTSNAPSHOT Warren, Ohio Contacts: City of Warren Community Development (330)841-2595 Date of Announcement: June 1999 Amount: $200,000 Profile: The Pilot targets brownfields within the RENEW Plan corridor. Regional Brownfields Team U.S. EPA - Region 5 (312)353-3161 Visit the EPA Region 5 Brownfields web site at: http://www.epa.gov/R5Brownfields/ For further information, including specific Pilot contacts, additional Pilot information, brownfields news and events, and publications and links, visit the EPA Brownfields web site at: http://www.epa.gov/brownfields/ ------- OBJECTIVES The Pilot's objective is to spur Warren's economic revitalization by helping implement the RENEW plan. It will do this by conducting environmental assessments on four strategically located brownfields within the plan area, and completing cleanup and redevelopment plans for the sites. The RENEW plan includes revitalization of the downtown area, focusing on the city's recreational systems that include parks, bike and walk pathways, and wildlife sanctuaries that parallel the Mahoning River. The RENEW plan corridor is also a link in a proposed multi-purpose, ninety-mile recreational trail, the GreenWay Trail. ACCOMPLISHMENTS ANDACTIVITIES Activities planned as part of this Pilot include: • Conducting Phase I assessments of four sites within the city's RENEW Plan redevelopment area, and conducting Phase II assessments where necessary; • Developing cleanup plans and determining cleanup costs and a schedule for each site; • Examining redevelopment alternatives for the sites including a high-technology or research facility, parkland, and a footbridge extension; • Investigating cleanup financing sources; and • Conducting community meetings to get input on site- specific activities. The cooperative agreement for this Pilot has not yet been negotiated; therefore, activities described in this fact sheet are subject to change. Brownfields Assessment Demonstration Pilot Warren, Ohio June 1999 EPA500-F-99-146 ------- |