Brownfields 2002 Revolving Loan Fund Pilot
Fact Sheet
Mac/era County, CA
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
Madera County (population 125,000) is a rural county
located in the Central San Joaquin Valley. The
southwestern half of the county consists of farmlands
and dairy country, while the northeastern part of the
county is rich timberland in the foothills of the Sierra
Mountains. The county economy, in the 1900s, was
based on mining, timber, and agriculture. The county's
two small cities and several towns were built around
these industries. Changes in the timber and agricultural
industries have resulted in the closure of lumber mills
and food processing plants, with devastating losses of
jobs and economic vitality in the small towns where the
facilities were located. It has been extremely difficult to
find alternative uses for these sites because of their rural
location and the presence of contamination. Countywide,
the unemployment rate is 13%, and 23% of residents live
in poverty.
The county is working to establish partnerships dedicated
to the redevelopment of brownfields scattered throughout
the county. The small communities of North Fork,
Ahwahnee, and Raymond have been the most severely
impacted by the closure of industrial and other facilities.
The county has made the most progress at the North Fork
site, a timber mill that closed in 1994. One sixth of the
town's businesses have closed since the mill closing. The
Pilot Snapshot
Date of Announcement: 05/01/2002
Amount: $1,000,000
Profile: Sites throughout Madera County
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 9 Brownfields Team
(415)972-3091
EPA Region 9 Brownfields Web site
(http://www.epa.gov/region9/brownfields)
Grant Recipient: Madera County, CA
(559)675-7823
Objectives
The goal of the BCRLF Pilot is to support revitalization
efforts in the small communities of North Fork and
Ahwahnee and other communities countywide that have
lost major industrial facilities. Priority will be given to
properties that are located close to a residential
communities.
Activities
Fund Structure and Operations
The Madera County Environmental Health Department
is the cooperative agreement recipient and will serve as
the lead agency. The California Department of Toxic
Substances Control will provide a site manager. The
Madera County Economic Development Commission
will serve as the fund manager.
There are several sources of funds in Madera County
that can be used in conjunction with BCRLF Pilot funds
for redevelopment purposes. The Madera County
Economic Development Commission administers a
small business revolving loan fund through a grant from
United States
Environmental
Protection Agency
Washington, DC 20450
Solid Waste
and Emergency
Response (5105T)
EPA 500-F-02-021
May 02
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county and the North Fork community have responded the federal Community Development Block Grants
by conducting extensive redevelopment planning and program. The county will apply for a California
leveraging over $ 1 million in various forms of Proposition 12 Parks Bond Act grant for capital
government assistance. However, the lack of funding that improvements to the Ahwahnee Hill property. The
can be used for cleanup of contaminated soils continues county anticipates receiving a HUD capacity-building
to hamper reuse of this site. grant, which will enable the county to hire a part-time
fund developer.
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,.
Environmental andldEmSency EPA *»**?™
Protection Agency ResDonse(51oVn May 02
Washington, DC 20450 Kesponse (bl Ob I)
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