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  Brownfields  2008

  Grant  Fact  Sheet

     Lake  Charles,  LA


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 Lake Charles was selected to receive a
brownfields cleanup grant. Located at the convergence
of Lake Charles and the Calcasieu River in southwest-
ern Louisiana, Lake Charles (population 71,757) was
seriously disrupted by Hurricane Rita in 2005. Nearly
two-thirds of the housing stock in Calcasieu Parish,
where Lake Charles is located, was damaged or
destroyed by wind or flooding. However, the aftermath
of the hurricane brought an economic boom to parts of
Lake Charles as rebuilding efforts began. In the
targeted brownfields communities of the city, the
poverty rate is almost 30 percent, and over 86 percent
of residents are minorities. These communities contain
deteriorating buildings, boarded up commercial and
industrial sites, and a riverfront that is inaccessible to
 Cleanup Grant
 $200,000 for hazardous substances
 EPA has selected the City of Lake Charles for a
 brownfields cleanup grant. Hazardous substances
 grant funds will be used to clean up the former
 Sears and Roebuck retail store at 600 Ryan Street.
 The 30-year-old structure covers about four acres
 and is contaminated with metals, inorganic con-
 taminants, and other hazardous substances. Grant
 funds also will be used to monitor the cleanup and
 conduct community outreach activities.
 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 6 Brownfields Team
 214-665-6780
 http://www.epa.gov/region6/brownfields

 Grant Recipient: City of Lake Charles, LA
 337-491-1542

 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.
the public. When the former Sears and Roebuck
building is cleaned up, the city plans to redevelop it with
retail and office space on the lower level and a hotel on
the upper levels. This redevelopment is expected to
catalyze adjacent development and support redevelop-
ment of the riverfront.
                                                  Solid Waste and
                                                  Emergency Response
                                                  (5105T)
                         EPA560-F-08-152
                         April 2008
                         www.epa.gov/brownfields

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