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  Brownfields  2008

  Grant  Fact  Sheet

          Sanford,  ME


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 Town of Sanford was selected to receive a
brownfields assessment grant. Located along the
Mousam River in southwestern Maine, Sanford
(population 20,806) thrived from the 1800s through the
1950s as a vibrant textile mill town. When the mills
relocated in 1954, one third of the town's population
became unemployed. By the 1990s, most of Sanford's
manufacturing base had moved. Since late 2000,
additional closures of industrial facilities have resulted
in the loss of 1,355 jobs. Today, the town's unemploy-
ment and poverty rates exceed county and state rates,
and the median household income is below county and
state averages. The town's former textile mill complex
is vacant and symbolizes Sanford's economic distress.
Many of the town's 20 identified brownfields lie within
this complex. The complex is in such poor condition
 Assessment Grant
 $200,000 for hazardous substances
 EPA has selected the Town of Sanford for a
 brownfields assessment grant. Hazardous sub-
 stances grant funds will be used to inventory and
 prioritize brownfield sites throughout Sanford.
 Grant funds also will be used to conduct up to five
 Phase I and four to six Phase II environmental site
 assessments and support 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 1 Brownfields Team
 617-918-1424
 http://www.epa.gov/regionl/brownfields

 Grant Recipient: Town of Sanford, ME
 207-324-9150

 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.
that the county assessor values the property at less
than one-tenth of its cumulative replacement value.
Brownfields assessment will help Sanford determine
the extent of contamination at the sites and is ex-
pected to provide incentive for investment in the
properties.
                                                  Solid Waste and
                                                  Emergency Response
                                                  (5105T)
                         EPA 560-F-08-028
                         April 2008
                         www.epa.gov/brownfields

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