<: Brownfields 2011 Assessment and Cleanup
Grant Fact Sheet
Rochester, NY
EPA Brownfields Program
EPA's Brownfields Program empowers states.
communities, and other stakeholders to work together to
prevent, assess, safely clean up, and sustainably reuse
brownfields. A brownfield 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. In
2002, the Small Business Liability Relief and
Brownfields Revitalization Act was passed to help
states and communities around the country cleanup and
revitalize brownfields sites. 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 Rochester was selected to receive two
brownfields assessment grants and a brownfields
cleanup grant. Located in northwestern New York,
Rochester (population 207,291) has about 6,000
commercial and industrial properties, of which 3,875
have potential environmental issues. The number of
vacant properties in Rochester has risen by about 50
percent in the last five years. The city lost nearly 12
percent of its residents between 1990 and 2009, which,
when combined with increases in abandoned properties
and manufacturing losses, has depressed property
values and the property tax base. As of August 2010,
the unemployment rate in Rochester was 11.7 percent.
About 50 percent of city residents are minorities, and
the median household income is significantly lower
than state and national medians. Brownfield
assessments will help the city identify environmental
contaminants and are expected to generate interest from
potential redevelopers. The city has received inquiries
from local developers interested in redeveloping the
targeted Andrews Street site for mixed residential and
commercial use. Cleanup of the site will reduce the risk
of exposure to contamination and is expected to enable
redevelopment to proceed.
Assessment Grants
$200,000 for hazardous substances
$200,000 for petroleum
EPA has selected the City of Rochester for two
brownfields assessment grants. Community-wide
hazardous substances grant funds will be used to
conduct 25 Phase I and 10 Phase II environmental
site assessments. Grant funds also will be used to
support community outreach activities and monitor
the city's institutional controls. Petroleum grant
funds will be used to perform the same tasks at sites
with potential petroleum contamination.
Cleanup Grant
$200,000 for hazardous substances
EPA has selected the City of Rochester for a
brownfields cleanup grant. Hazardous substances
grant funds will be used to clean up the Andrews
Street site at 300, 304-308, and 320 Andrews Street
and 25 Evans Street. The site consists of four parcels
used for various commercial and industrial purposes
since the early 1920s, including a commercial bus
depot, chemical sales and distribution, and dry
cleaning equipment distribution. Soil and
groundwater are impacted by volatile organic
compounds, including perchloroethene. Grant funds
also will be used to monitor institutional controls 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
(http://www.epa.gov/brownfields).
EPA Region 2 Brownfields Team
(212) 637-3260
EPA Region 2 Brownfields Web site
(http://www.epa.gov/region2/brownfields)
Grant Recipient: City of Rochester,NY
United States
Environmental
Protection Agency
Washington, DC 20450
Solid Waste
and Emergency
Response (5105T)
E PA 560-F-128-027
May 11
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(585) 428-5978
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 negotiated.
Therefore, activities described in this fact sheet are
subject to change.
United States
Environmental
Protection Agency
Washington, DC 20450
Solid Waste
and Emergency
Response (5105T)
E PA 560-F-128-027
May 11
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