\ Brownfields 2009 Assessment and Cleanup
Grant Fact Sheet
**лл* Waterbury Development Corporation, CT
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 Waterbury Development Corporation was selected
to receive two brownfields assessment grants and two
brownfields cleanup grants. Waterbury (population
107,902) is located on the Naugatuck River southwest
of Hartford. Nicknamed the "Brass City," Waterbury
once produced the largest quantity of brass castings and
finished products in the world. During World Wars I
and II, production facilities were quickly able to shift to
munitions. The city's last brass mill closed in the 1970s.
This strong industrial past has left behind a legacy of
contamination, and the city has a list of nearly 100
suspected brownfield sites. Unemployment and poverty
rates in the city are significantly higher than the state's
rates. Many of the region's minority residents are
concentrated in Waterbury. African-American and
Hispanic residents in one of the target areas account for
90 percent of the population. Assessment is the first
step in returning brownfields to productive reuse.
Cleanup of the Maple Street and Cherry Avenue sites
will enable a neighboring company to acquire the land
necessary to complete further development of its
business. Development of this business will help the
city retain existing jobs, add new ones, and generate
additional property taxes.
Assessment Grants
$200,000 for hazardous substances
$200,000 for petroleum
EPA has selected the Waterbury Development
Corporation for two brownfields assessment grants.
Community-wide hazardous substances and
petroleum grant funds will be used to perform 12
Phase I and 6 Phase II environmental site
assessments. Grant funds also will be used to
conduct cleanup planning and support community
outreach activities. The project will focus initially on
the South Main Street and East Main Street
Redevelopment Areas.
Cleanup Grants
$400,000 for hazardous substances
EPA has selected the Waterbury Development
Corporation for two brownfields cleanup grants.
Hazardous substances grant funds will be used to
clean up the 167 Maple Street site, which was used
for paint and dress manufacturing, and the 16 Cherry
Avenue site, which was used for manufacturing
abrasives and for warehousing. Soils at both sites are
contaminated with polyaromatic hydrocarbons,
metals, and volatile organic compounds. Grant funds
also will be used to conduct 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 1 Brownfields Team
(617)918-1424
EPA Region 1 Brownfields Web site
(http: //www. epa.gov/region 1 /brownfields)
Grant Recipient: Waterbury Development
Corporation,CT
United States
Environmental
Protection Agency
Washington, DC 20450
Solid Waste
and Emergency
Response (5105T)
EPA 560-F-09-265
May 09
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(203) 346-2607 ext 103
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-09-265
May 09
------- |