Brownfields 2009 Assessment Grant Fact Sheet
               Muskegon,  Ml
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 Muskegon was selected to receive a
brownfields assessment grant. Located on the eastern
shore of Lake Michigan, Muskegon (population
40,105)  benefited from a massive logging industry in
the early 1800s. Heavy industry, including foundries,
automobile parts manufacturing, and electroplating
facilities, eventually replaced logging and wood
processing operations as the key drivers of the
economy. Declines in these sectors have left a legacy of
blighted and contaminated properties, many in the
downtown area and along the waterfront. These sites
have negatively impacted property values and
investment. The state has identified 61 locations with
hazardous substances contamination and 111 leaking
underground storage tanks. Many low-income residents
reside near these known brownfields. Forty-eight
percent of downtown residents are African-American,
and the city's poverty rate exceeds 20 percent.
Assessment of brownfields is expected to help secure
needed investment in the city and catalyze site cleanup
and redevelopment.
                   Assessment Grant

                   $200,000 for hazardous substances

                   EPA has selected the City of Muskegon for a
                   brownfields assessment grant. Community-wide
                   hazardous substances grant funds will be used to
                   conduct about 12 Phase I and 9 Phase II
                   environmental site assessments. Grant funds also
                   will be used to develop five cleanup plans 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 5 Brownfields Team
                   (312)886-7576
                   EPA Region 5 Brownfields Web  site
                   (http://www.epa.gov/R5Brownfields)

                   Grant Recipient: City of Muskegon,MI
                   (231)724-6702

                   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)
EPA 560-F-09-267
        May 09

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