Brownfields 2001 Assessment Pilot Fact Sheet
Haverstraw, NY
EPA Brownfields Initiative
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. On
January 11, 2002, President George W. Bush signed into
law the Small Business Liability Relief and Brownfields
Revitalization Act. Under the Brownfields 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.
Background
EPA has selected the Village of Haverstraw for a
Brownfields Assessment Pilot. The city also was selected
to receive additional funding for assessments at
brownfields properties to be used for greenspace
purposes. Haverstraw (population 9,438) is a small,
historic village located on the western bank of the
Hudson River, just north of New York City. The village
has vastly different demographics and lags economically
behind other communities in Rockland County. Nearly
19 percent of Haverstraw's population lives at or below
the poverty line and per capita income is $11,016.
Minorities represent about 71 percent of Haverstraw's
population.
The Hudson River waterfront has historically been an
economic generator for the village. Haverstraw was the
"brick making capital of the world" in the 19th and 20th
centuries, when 38 brickyards lined the waterfront.
During the Great Depression, the demand for bricks
declined and many of the brickyards were forced to
close. Since the 1930s , the Haverstraw waterfront has
been used intermittently for various industrial purposes,
including a chair factory, and fuel and oil storage. This
Pilot targets three abandoned industrial properties
encompassing 55 acres along the banks of the Hudson,
which recently was designated an American Heritage
Pilot Snapshot
Date of Announcement: 04/01/2001
Amount: $200,000
$50,000 for Greenspace
Profile: The Pilot focuses on three abandoned
industrial sites along Haverstraw's Hudson River
waterfront, which was once the brick making capital
of the world.
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)637-4309
EPA Region 2 Brownfields Web site
(http://www.epa.gov/region02/brownfields/)
Grant Recipient: Haverstraw, NY
(914)429-0300
Objectives
The Pilot is a key step in Haverstraw's waterfront
revitalization effort. Through this Pilot, the village
seeks to empower community groups to continue active
participation in the decision-making process that will
shape the revitalization of the Haverstraw waterfront.
The Pilot also will create a working plan to assess, clean
up, and return brownfields to productive use, thereby
creating new jobs, contributing to the tax base, and
reclaiming public enjoyment of the waterfront. Finally,
the Pilot will develop a program to institutionalize
brownfields decision-making in all development and
planning activities.
Activities
Activities planned as part of this Pilot include:
• Implementing a comprehensive Community
Involvement Program designed to empower local
United States
Environmental
Protection Agency
Washington, DC 20450
Solid Waste
and Emergency
Response (5105T)
EPA500-F-01-281
Apr 01
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community groups and residents;
• Conducting Phase II environmental site
assessments on 28 acres of the project area;
• Developing cleanup and site reuse plans that will
direct future use of the area, promote jobs and
economic growth, and maximize public access to
the waterfront; and
• Setting aside the riverfront shoreline of the 55
targeted acres for a public esplanade park.
The cooperative agreement for this Pilot has not yet
been negotiated; therefore, activities described in this
fact sheet are subject to change.
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 Q ., . ,A/__t,.
E-ironmental andEmXency EPA 50°-F-°1 ^
Protection Agency ResDonse(51oVn Apr01
Washington, DC 20450 Kesponse (bl Ob I)
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