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  Brownfields  2008

  Grant  Fact Sheet

            Ottawa, IL


EPA Brownfields Program

EPA's Brownfields Program empowers states, commu-
nities, and other stakeholders to work together to
prevent, assess, safely clean up, and sustainably reuse
brownfields. Abrownfield site is real property, the
expansion, redevelopment, or reuse of which may be
complicated by the presence or potential presence of a
hazardous substance, pollutant, or contaminant.  On
January 11, 2002, President George W. Bush signed
into law the Small Business Liability Relief and
Brownfields Revitalization Act. Under this law, EPA
provides financial assistance to eligible applicants
through four competitive grant programs: assessment
grants, revolving loan fund grants, cleanup grants, and
job training grants. Additionally, funding support is
provided to state and tribal response programs through
a separate mechanism.

Community Description

The City of Ottawa was selected to receive two
brownfields assessment grants. Ottawa (population
18,307) is located about 80 miles southwest of Chi-
cago. The city's economic well-being is largely tied to
an industrial sector that has experienced a downturn in
recent years. The city is seeking to diversify its
economy, and brownfields redevelopment is a crucial
component of this effort. More than 300 brownfields,
encompassing 18  percent of the city's land area, have
been identified. Assessments made through these
grants will focus on sites within a target area in
Ottawa's downtown and industrial corridor. In this
target area, 26.9 percent of residents live below the
poverty level, and 23.4 percent are minorities. These
assessments are a first step toward the eventual
cleanup and redevelopment of brownfields.
Assessment Grants
$200,000 for hazardous substances
$200,000 for petroleum

EPA has selected the City of Ottawa for two
brownfields assessment grants. Hazardous sub-
stances grant funds will be used to conduct seven
Phase I and between three and seven Phase II
environmental site assessments, health monitoring,
and community involvement activities. Petroleum
grant funds will be used to perform the same tasks
at sites with potential petroleum contamination.
Contacts
For further information, including specific grant
contacts, additional grant information, brownfields
news and events, and publications and links, visit
the EPA Brownfields web site at: www.epa.gov/
brownfields.

EPA Region 5 Brownfields Team
312-886-7576
http://www.epa.gov/R5Brownfields

Grant Recipient: City of Ottawa, IL
815-433-0161

The information presented in this fact sheet comes
from  the grant proposal; EPA cannot attest to the
accuracy of this information. The cooperative
agreement for the grant has not yet been negoti-
ated.  Therefore, activities described in this fact
sheet are subject to change.
                                                 Solid Waste and
                                                 Emergency Response
                                                 (5105T)
                        EPA 560-F-08-096
                        April 2008
                        www.epa.gov/brownfields

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