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 Brownfields  2003

 Grant Fact  Sheet

        Atchison,  KS



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 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. Addition-
ally, funding support is provided to state and tribal
response programs through a separate mechanism.

Community Description

The City of Atchison was selected to receive an
assessment grant. Atchison (population 10,200) is a
small, rural community located on the banks of the
Missouri River in northeastern Kansas. The historic
city was the second to be incorporated in Kansas, and
once  was home to some of the West's most famous
companies, including the Pony Express and Overland
Stage and Mail Company. By the early 1900s, the
population boomed to 20,000. Due to a declining
economy and a loss of businesses and jobs to other
Western states, the city's population has declined by
nearly half. The county's median household income is
about 20 percent less than the national average. The
city hopes that redevelopment of the Commercial
                                     Assessment Grant
                                     $200,000 for hazardous substances
                                     EPA has selected the City of Atchison for a
                                     brownfields assessment grant.  The city intends
                                     to use grant funds for Phase I and Phase II
                                     environmental site assessments at several
                                     potentially contaminated sites along the Commer-
                                     cial Street Corridor and the riverfront, including
                                     an abandoned commercial property, a former dry
                                     cleaning facility, and a riverfront salvage yard.
                                     Grant funds also will be used for community
                                     involvement and redevelopment planning.
                                     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 7 Brownfields Team
                                     913-551-7786
                                     http://www.epa.gov/region07/brownfields/

                                     Grant Recipient: City of Atchison, KS
                                     913-367-5500

                                     Prior to receipt of these funds in fiscal year 2003, the City
                                     of Atchison has not received funding for brownfields grants.

                                     The cooperative agreement for this grant has not yet been
                                     negotiated; therefore, activities described in this fact sheet
                                     are subject to change.
                                  Street Corridor sites into commercial outlets and a
                                  riverfront park will revitalize the downtown area,
                                  attracting new businesses and increasing tourism in
                                  time for the Lewis and Clark Bicentennial Commemo-
                                  ration on July 4,2004.
                                                  Solid Waste and
                                                  Emergency Response
                                                  (5105T)
                                                           EPA 500-F-03-047
                                                           June 2003
                                                           www.epa.gov/brownfields

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