United States Environmental Protection Agency Washington, D.C. 20460 Solid Waste and Emergency Response(5101) EPA500-F-99-140 June 1999 www.epa.gov/brownfields/ SEPA Brownfields Assessment Demonstration Pilot Muskegon Heights, Ml Outreach and Special Projects Staff (5101) Quick Reference Fact Sheet EPA's Brownfields Economic Redevelopment Initiative is designed to empower states, communities, and other stakeholders in economic redevelopment to work together in a timely manner to prevent, assess, safely clean up, and sustainably reuse brownfields. A brownfield is a site, or portion thereof, that has actual or perceived contamination and an active potential for redevelopment or reuse. EPA is funding: assessment demonstration pilot programs (each funded up to $200,000 over two years), to assess brownfields sites and to test cleanup and redevelopment models;job training pilot programs (each funded up to $200,000 over two years), to provide training for residents of communities affected by brownfieldstofacilitatecleanupofbrownfieldssites and preparetrainees for future employmentintheenvironmental field; and, cleanup revolving loan fund programs (each funded up to $500,000 over five years) to capitalize loan funds to make loans for the environmental cleanup of brownfields. These pilot programs are intended to provide EPA, states, tribes, municipalities, and communities with useful information and strategies as they continue to seek new methods to promote a unified approach to site assessment, environmental cleanup, and redevelopment. BACKGROUND EPA has selected the City of Muskegon Heights for a Brownfields Pilot. Muskegon Heights is a small community, approximately 3 square miles with 13,176 residents, 70 percent of whom are African American. Historically, the city accepted industrial waste for use as fill material and was home to metal foundries, machining operations, and pattern-making businesses that supported the automotive and defense industries. As these industries declined and left the city, Muskegon Heights continued to suffer from unemployment, poverty, and an increasing number of industrial brownfields. Thirty-five percent of the population lives in poverty, and the unemployment rate is 14 percent. The City of Muskegon Heights and its neighbor, Muskegon, is a U.S. Housing and Urban Development-designated Enterprise Community (EC). The city has also received a U.S. Department of Justice Weed & Seed Program grant that addresses crime and related social issues. OBJECTIVES Muskegon Heights' ultimate goal is the economic revitalization of the city through the cleanup and PILOTSNAPSHOT Muskegon Heights, Michigan Dateof Announcement: June 1999 Amount: $200,000 Profile: The Pilot plans to inventory and prioritize brownfields in Muskegon Heights for assessment, cleanup and redevelopment. Contacts: City of Muskegon Heights Planning and Community Development (616)733-1355 Regional Brownfields Team U.S. EPA- Region 5 (312)353-3161 Visit the EPA Region 5 Brownfields web site at: http://www.epa.gov/R5Brownfields/ For further information, including specific Pilot contacts, additional Pilot information, brownfields news and events, and publications and links, visit the EPA Brownfields web site at: http://www.epa.gov/brownfields/ ------- redevelopment of brownfields and the mitigation of risks to human health and the environment. To achieve this objective, the city will carefully integrate Pilot activities with those conducted with state funding for brownfields assessments. Together, these two projects and the newly created Brownfields Redevelopment Authority will create and implement a comprehensive, integrated brownfields strategy for the city. ACCOMPLISHMENTS ANDACTIVITIES Activities planned as part of this Pilot include: • Developing a comprehensive inventory of brownfields in the city; • Conducting an economic analysis of and prioritizing sites based on redevelopment potential; • Developingapreliminarybrownfieldsredevelopment plan, including a strategy for city acquisition of the 15 highest-priority sites; • Performing a compliance analysis to evaluate the potential contaminant exposure pathways; • Designing cleanup plans and estimating cleanup costs for the priority sites; and • Conducting public outreach and ensuring community involvement by holding five community outreach workshops, creating a Pilot web site, and developing communication materials. The cooperative agreement for this Pilot has not yet been negotiated; therefore, activities described in this fact sheet are subject to change. Brownfields Assessment Demonstration Pilot Muskegon Heights, Michigan June 1999 EPA500-F-99-140 ------- |