xvEPA
                                                                                                            United States
                                                                                                            Environmental Protection
                                                                                                            Agency
BURNS STREET  NUTRITION CENTER
                                                                                                             EPA 560-F-12-150
                                                                                                                    April 2012
                                                          Missoula, MT
                                               Revolving Loan Fund Grant
 An Idle, Former Freight Depot Now Serves  as a Community Food Center
     ADDRESS:       1500 Burns Street, Missoula, Montana 59802
     PROPERTY SIZE:   0.30 acres
     FORMER USES:    Freight transfer warehouse
     CURRENT USE:    Locally operated food co-op; planned expansion of facilities to include a
                  shared-use commercial kitchen and cafe
     EPA GRANT RECIPIENT:
     The City of Missoula used its EPA Brownfields Revolving Loan Fund
     (RLF) grant (awarded in 2009 under the American Recovery and
     Reinvestment Act) to sub-grant $23,052 to the North Missoula
     Community Development Corporation for asbestos abatement
                                                      PROJECT PARTNERS:
The City of Missoula,
North Missoula Community
Development Corporation,
and the Sample Foundation
    PROJECT BACKGROUND:
                                                                                The redevelopment of the former freight depot addresses the
                                                                                        community's need for a grocery store
    Built in  1952, the 13,000-square foot industrial building in downtown Missoula served as a freight transfer warehouse for over half
    a century. In 2005, the North Missoula Community Development Corporation (NMCDC) purchased the former depot as part of
    an effort to revitalize Missoula's Northside neighborhood. The Northside community had  become a "food desert"—an area where
    healthy and affordable food is difficult to obtain—and based on regular community meetings and public input, NMCDC planned to
    transform the former depot into a food cooperative, cafe and bakery. However, redevelopment plans for the property were hindered
    by the results of an environmental assessment conducted by NMCDC in June 2009, which revealed the likely presence of asbestos in
    pipe insulation, roof paneling and floor tile.
    In August 2009, the City of Missoula drew from a $900,000 EPA Brownfields RLF grant awarded under the American Recovery and
    Reinvestment Act of 2009 to sub-grant $23,052 to NMCDC for asbestos abatement. As a result, NMCDC completed cleanup of the
    property in October 2010. Asbestos abatement professionals isolated contaminated areas with plastic barriers to prevent airborne
    particles from migrating to other areas, removed contaminated materials, disposed of hazardous materials in sealed bags, and
    conducted air quality testing to ensure the cleanup's success.

    KEY ACCOMPLISHMENTS:
    •   NMCDC completed an environmental assessment of the property that revealed likely asbestos contamination
    •   Missoula provided an approximately $23,000 sub-grant from its EPA RLF grant to NMCDC to remove asbestos
    •   NMCDC completed cleanup in October 2010
    •   To date, more than $960,000 has been leveraged towards redevelopment of the property—including $950,000 from federal
       sources and a $ 10,000 grant from  The Sample Foundation, Inc., a philanthropic organization
    •   Based on input obtained from community meetings, NMCDC redeveloped a portion of the building into the Missoula Community
       Food Co-op, a member owned and operated cooperative market
    •   Fourteen jobs were leveraged  as a result of this project—six related to cleanup and eight for redevelopment

    OUTCOME:
    On March 5, 201 I, NMCDC celebrated the grand opening of the new Missoula Community Food Co-op at the Burns Street
    Nutrition Center property. No longer marred by diesel exhaust stains and asbestos contamination, this former freight depot
    warehouse serves as a model of neighborhood revitalization. The co-op provides low-income residents access to healthy, affordable
    and local food, and creates a network for local and regional farmers and produce buyers. And in June 201 I, in a partnership with
    the Missoula Food Bank and the Boys and  Girls Club, NMCDC launched an afternoon program to serve free meals to low-income
    kids; the property now offers local  youth a safe gathering place with access to nutritious food. In the near future, NMCDC plans to
    collaborate with local entrepreneurs to open  Burns Street Bistro, a shared use commercial kitchen and cafe, on the property. This
    project is a key component of an area-wide restoration effort to provide affordable homes, infrastructure for public meeting space,
    job training and access to locally-grown, wholesome food.
    FOR MORE INFORMATION: Visit the EPA Brownfields website at www.epa.gov/Region8/brownfields or call EPA Region 8 at (303) 312-7074
   For additional data and geographic information for this and other Brownfields grants, please visit EPA's Cleanups in My Community - http://iaspub.epa.gov/Cleanups/

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