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Brownfields 2003
Grant Fact Sheet
Allentown, PA
EPA Brownfields Program
EPA's Brownfields Program empowers states, commu-
nities, and other stakeholders in economic development
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 con-
taminant. 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
The City of Allentown was selected to receive a
revolving loan fund grant. Allentown (population
106,632) is Pennsylvania's third largest city after
Philadelphia and Pittsburgh. Beginning with iron and
steel production for railroads in the 1850s and continu-
ing with a host of other industries, Allentown was one
of the nation's great workshops. With the changing
economic landscape in recent decades, many of the
city's industrial sites are now abandoned, creating
blight and posing potential risks to nearby residents.
An estimated 35-45 brownfields are scattered through-
out the city. Many brownfields are located in an
economically disadvantaged 48-square block area
bordered by Tilghman Street to the north and Hamilton
Street to the south, contributing to this neighborhood's
decline and exacerbating the high crime rates. Minori-
Revolving Loan Fund
Grant
New'
L2003/
$1,000,000 for hazardous substances
EPA has selected the City of Allentown for a
brownfields revolving loan fund grant. The grant
will be used to capitalize a revolving loan fund
from which Allentown will provide loans and
subgrants to conduct cleanup activities. The city
will focus on cleaning up brownfields in one of
the city's most economically disadvantaged
neighborhoods that lies within a 48-square block
area bordered by Tilghman Street to the north
and Hamilton Street to the south.
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 at:
www.epa.gov/brownfields.
EPA Region 3 Brownfields Team
215-814-3129
http://www.epa.gov/reg3hwmd/bfs/index.htm
Grant Recipient: City of Allentown, PA
610-437-7610
Prior to receipt of these funds in fiscal year 2003, the City
of Allentown has not received brownfields grant funding.
The cooperative agreement for this grant has not yet been
negotiated; therefore, activities described in this fact sheet
are subject to change.
ties make up 68 percent of the population in this area,
and 35 percent of residents live below the poverty
level. Allentown has already initiated a downtown
revitalization project in this neighborhood that focuses
on a mixed-use brownfields redevelopment project
known as Lehigh Landing. This grant will enable the
city to continue to successfully clean up and redevelop
its brownfields, thereby encouraging reinvestment,
creating jobs, and improving the quality of life for
disadvantaged residents.
Solid Waste and
Emergency Response
(5105T)
EPA 500-F-03-044
June 2003
www.epa.gov/brownfields
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