Brownfields 2003 Assessment Grant  Fact Sheet
    ~         Hennepin County, Minneapolis, MN
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. 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.

Community Description

Hennepin County was selected to receive an assessment
grant. For several decades, some urban neighborhoods
in Hennepin County have been perceived as places in
decline and disinvestment. The communities in the
targeted Lowry Avenue Corridor and the Midtown
Corridor are among the poorest in the Twin Cities
region. The Lowry Avenue  Corridor has a 74 percent
minority population, and 59 percent of Midtown
Corridor residents are minorities. Site assessments will
be conducted in sections of the corridors that are within
the city of Minneapolis' Empowerment Zone. Reuse
planning for the two project areas has been proceeding
for a number of years with the input of local
communities and other stakeholders. In both areas,
property reuse decisions will be driven by input from
the local community, prospective developers, and other
stakeholders.
                  Assessment Grant

                  $200,000 for hazardous substances
                  $200,000 for petroleum

                  EPA has selected Hennepin County for a
                  brownfields assessment grant. Grant funds will be
                  used for assessments in the Lowry Avenue Corridor
                  and the Midtown Corridor and to conduct
                  community outreach. The county will conduct Phase
                  I environmental site assessments for hazardous
                  substances and petroleum contamination at 12 to!5
                  properties. The county also plans to conduct Phase II
                  assessments for hazardous substances at six or seven
                  properties and to conduct Phase II assessments for
                  petroleum at eight to ten sites.

                  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: Hennepin County, MN Dept of
                  Environmental Services
                  (612) 348-5714

                  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)
EPA500-F-03-108
        Jun 03

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