United States
Environmental
Protection Agency
Washington, D.C. 20460
Solid Waste
and Emergency
Response (5101)
EPA500-F-99-090
May 1999
www.epa.gov/brownfields/
>>EPA Brownfields Cleanup
Revolving Loan Fund Pilot
CityofSomerville, MA
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 brownfields to facilitate cleanup of brownfields sites and prepare trainees for future employment in the environmental
field; and, cleanup revolving loan fund programs (each funded up to $500,000 over five years) to capitalize loan funds
to make loans forthe 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
Somerville, Massachusetts is an older, working-class
community located just north of Boston. As the most
densely populated community in New England,
Somerville is faced with a limited amount of available
commercial/industrial land to accommodate new
development proj ects. Due to historic land use patterns
dating back 150 years, Somerville is also faced with
residential properties directly abutting commercial and
industrial sites. Althoughthe 112recognizedbrownfields
in Somerville are spread throughoutthe City, large site
concentrations are found in the older industrial cores.
In addition to receiving a Brownfields Assessment
Pilot, Somerville is also a State Economic Target Area
and has recently been selected to participate in the
Groundwork USA Pilot program.
BCRLF OBJECTIVES
Through the establishment of a BCRLF, Somerville
plans to accelerate the transformation of brownfields
into community assets. The City has already taken a
proactive approach to local economic development by
establishing a variety of tools to encourage
redevelopment. The pilot anticipates thatthe BCRLF
program will help broaden Somerville's efforts, by
providing a mechanism for financing site cleanup,
PILOT SNAPSHOT
CityofSomerville,
Massachusetts
Date of Announcement:
May 25,1999
Amount: $500,000
BCRLF Target Area:
112 recognized brownfields
throughout the City, with a
focus on sites located in the
older industrial cores
Contacts:
Office of Housing & Community
Development
(617) 625-6600
Region 1 Brownfields
Coordinator
(617) 918-1209
Visit the EPA Region 1 Brownfields web site at:
www.epa.gov/region01/remed/brnfld/
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/
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something that currently doesnotexistinthe City. The
City expects that the economic reuse of brownfields
sites will contribute to the commercial tax base and
create new jobs.
FUND STRUCTURE AND OPERATIONS
The Office of Housing and Community Development
(OHCD) will serve as lead agency and fund manager.
OHCD has over 20 years experience managing the
Somerville Economic Development Partnership
(SEDP) loan program and responsibility for overseeing
large sums of Federal grants. The Massachusetts
Department of Environmental Protection will assist the
pilotin carrying out its site management responsibilities.
The pilot expects that BCRLF applicants will seek
loans ranging from $75,000to $ 150,000 andthatthey
will make three or four loans during the initial round of
lending.
LEVERAGING
OHCD plans to target borrowers that utilize either the
City's SEDP revolving loan funds or Massachusetts
Development Finance Agency (MDFA) funds. In
addition, the City' s Economic Development Incentive
Program enables local projects that demonstrate
significantpublic benefitto use tax increment financing.
OHCD also has a working relationship with several
areabanks, through the SEDP loan program, which the
pilothopes will facilitate additional leveraging of funds.
OHCD will provide in-kind services, particularly staff
time, technical expertise, and the production and
distribution of marketing materials.
Use of BCRLF Pilot funds must be in accordance with
CERCLA, and all CERCLA restrictions on use of funding
also apply to BCRLF funds.
Brownfields Cleanup Revolving Loan Fund Pilot City of Somerville, Massachusetts
May 1999 EPA 500-F-99-090
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