United States Environmental Protection Agency Washington, D.C. 20460 Solid Waste and Emergency Response (5105) EPA 500-F-01-323 April 2001 www.epa.gov/brownfields/ <&EPA Brownfields Supplemental Assistance Charleston, SC Outreach and Special Projects Staff (5105) Quick Reference Fact Sheet EPA's Brownfields Economic Redevelopment Initiative is designed to empower states, communities, and other stakeholders in economic redevelopment to worktogether in atimelymannerto prevent, assess, and safely clean up brownfieldsto promote their sustainable reuse. Brownfields are abandoned, idled, or under-used industrial and commercial facilities where expansion or redevelopment is complicated by real orperceivedenvironmentalcontamination.EPAisfunding: assessment demonstration pilot programs (each funded up to $200,000 over two years, with additional funding provided for greenspace), to test assessment models and facilitate coordinated assessment and cleanup efforts at the federal, state, tribal, and local levels; and job training pilot programs (each funded up to $200,000 over two years), to provide training for residents of communities affected by brownfieldsto facilitate cleanup of brownfields sites and preparetraineesforfuture employment intheenvironmental field; and, a cleanup revolving loan fund program (each funded up to $1,000,000 over five years) to provide financial assistance 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 Charleston to receive supplemental assistance for its Brownfields Assessment Demonstration Pilot. The Charleston Pilot targets the city's "Neck" area, a 7.3-square mile federal Enterprise Community (EC) located north of historic Charleston and south of the closed Charleston Naval Complex. Approximately 22,500 people live in the 19 neighborhoods comprising the EC, where the unemployment rate is over 10 percent and 40 percent of families live in poverty. The median household income is $11,095. The original Pilot developed an inventory of 28 potential brownfields sites, completed four Phase 1 and two Phase II assessments, conducted community involvement activities, leveraged private funds to support project redevelopment efforts, and initiated redevelopment planning for one property. The original Pilot project identified more brownfields sites in the EC than were anticipated and pointed to additional activities necessary to facilitate redevelopment. Supplemental funds are needed to expand the proj ect to take advantage of local business and developer interest in additional redevelopment opportunities in the target area. PILOT SNAPSHOT Date of Award: April 2001 Charleston, South Carolina fp Amount: $150,000 Profile: The Pilot targets additional brownfields in the Charleston Enterprise Community for development into a light industrial parkfor manufacturing and distribution. Contacts: Charleston Department of Housing and Community Development (843)973-7285 Regional Brownfields Team U.S. EPA - Region 4 (404)562-9966 Visit the EPA Region 4 Brownfields web site at: http://www.epa.gov/region4/wastepgs/brownfpgs/bf.htm 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/ ------- OBJECTIVES AND PLANNED ACTIVITIES Supplemental assistance will be used to generate more detailed information on the sites in the inventory, perform site assessments at additional sites, help the city address environmental liability issues, and enhance community involvement in the project. The Pilot plans to: • Review historical records for all EC properties, developing a Geographic Information System (GIS) andincorporatingitintothecityplanning department's GIS, mapping key properties, and preparing a report that will serve as a reference for future assessments throughout the EC; • Conduct Phase I and Phase II assessments of at least three additional sites; • Prepare redevelopment plans for four brownfields in the federal EC; and • Expand public involvement by creating abrownfields web site, hosting a brownfields conference, and holding two community-wide meetings to involve residents in project activities. The cooperative agreement for this Pilot has not yet been negotiated; therefore, activities described in this fact sheet are subject to change. Brownfields Supplemental Assistance Charleston, South Carolina April 2001 EPA 500-F-01-323 ------- |