Brownfields 1999 Assessment Pilot Fact Sheet
Lacon, IL
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 City of Lacon for a Brownfields
Pilot. Lacon (population 1,986) is a small rural
community located in the Illinois River Valley, which
relied heavily on the Lacon Woolen Mill for
employment. When the mill closed in the late 1960s after
100 years of operation, the city lost a key business and
residents lost their main employer. Lacon currently has
an unemployment rate of 7 percent, and 55 percent of
city residents are low- to moderate-income. The mill site
is located in the city's South Ward, one of the poorest
areas of Lacon.
The city obtained control of the 17-acre mill site in 1996,
and discovered that the former mill's buildings,
groundwater, soil, and floodplain were filled with a
variety of contaminants, including asbestos, pesticides,
and volatile organic compounds (VOCs). The site is
approximately 1,000 feet from the city's drinking water
supply wells. Some preliminary investigation and
cleanup has been performed, but a thorough assessment
is necessary before the city can proceed with the rest of
its cleanup and redevelopment activities. The mill site
includes a four-acre parcel of former industrial property,
two acres of Illinois River bank and floodplain, and
eleven acres of Illinois River Bay.
Pilot Snapshot
Date of Announcement: 03/12/1999
Amount: $200,000
Profile: The Pilot targets the 17-acre former Lacon
Woolen Mill site, located on the banks of the Illinois
River.
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: Lacon, IL, City of
(309)246-3185
Objectives
The City of Lacon plans to clean up the mill site and
redevelop it to take advantage of the site's location on
the banks of the Illinois River. Planned uses include a
green area, public park, residential areas, retail, and
restaurants. Since the site is adjacent to a public river
access point, which includes small shops and
restaurants, redevelopment would expand the existing
riverfront and encourage tourism and recreational use.
The Pilot will contribute to this objective by performing
a comprehensive environmental investigation and
assisting the city in developing cleanup plans.
Activities
Activities planned as part of this Pilot include:
• Performing environmental assessments at the
Lacon Woolen Mill site, including soil and
groundwater analysis and assessment of the
sediments and past filling of the river bank and
bay; and
United States
Environmental
Protection Agency
Washington, DC 20450
Solid Waste
and Emergency
Response (5105T)
EPA500-F-99-014
Mar 99
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• Developing cleanup objectives and plans.
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™r°nmental and EmSency EPA *»
Protection Agency ResDonse(51oVn Mar 99
Washington, DC 20450 Kesponse (bl Ob I)
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Brownfields 1999 Supplemental Assessment
Pilot Fact Sheet
City of Lacon, IL
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 City of Lacon to receive
supplemental assistance for its Brownfields Assessment
Demonstration Pilot. Lacon (population approximately
2,000) is a rural community located in the Illinois River
Valley, which relied heavily on the Lacon Woolen Mill
for employment. When the mill closed in the late 1960s
after 100 years of operation, the city lost a key business
and residents lost their main employer. Lacon currently
has an unemployment rate of 7 percent, and 55 percent of
city residents are low- to moderate-income. The mill site
is located in the city's South Ward, one of the poorest
areas of Lacon.
The city obtained control of the 17-acre mill site in 1996,
and discovered that the former mill's buildings,
groundwater, soil, and floodplain were filled with a
variety of contaminants, including asbestos, pesticides,
and volatile organic compounds (VOCs). The site is
approximately 1,000 feet from the city's drinking water
supply wells. Some preliminary investigations and
cleanup were performed, and a Phase II environmental
assessment and cleanup action plan were funded by the
initial EPA Brownfields Assessment Demonstration
Pilot. However, during mill operations, outfall pipes
deposited liquid waste into the Illinois River, so before
the city can proceed with the rest of its redevelopment
activities, a oortion of the river offshore of the mill must
Pilot Snapshot
Date of Announcement: 04/01/2001
Amount: $150,000
Profile: City of Lacon, IL. The Pilot plans to assess
an area of the Illinois River, offshore of the Lacon
Woolen Mill site for sediment contamination in order
to facilitate site cleanup and eventual redevelopment
of the riverfront area.
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: Lacon, IL, City of
(309)246-6111
Objectives
The City of Lacon plans to use supplemental assistance
funds to help revitalize the city's riverfront in order to
boost the local economy through more tourism, jobs,
and an increased tax base. Prior to riverfront
redevelopment however, the Pilot plans to sample
sediment in the river offshore of the Lacon Woolen Mill
site and pursue a No Further Remediation Letter for the
area. When this work is completed, the city hopes to
extend the marina located north of the Lacon Woolen
Mill site, providing boat access to a new greenspace
area for bird watching, walking trails, and fishing, as
well as to new and existing restaurants, retail stores, and
the American Legion Hall.
The Pilot plans to:
• Conduct sediment sampling in the river offshore
of the Lacon Woolen Mill site including an
evaluation of the depth and breadth of sediment
United States
Environmental
Protection Agency
Washington, DC 20450
Solid Waste
and Emergency
Response (5105T)
EPA500-F-01-303
Apr 01
-------
be sampled for contamination. contamination;
• Establish cleanup objectives for groundwater and
the river;
• Develop a cleanup action plan for any offshore
contamination discovered; and
• Conduct community outreach activities to
educate residents on project activities.
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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