Brownfields 2011 Revolving Loan Fund Grant Fact Sheet WestAllis, Wl 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 City of West Allis was selected to receive a brownfields revolving loan fund grant. West Allis (population 60,600), a first-ring suburb of Milwaukee, has been impacted by its long history as an industrial community and the presence of former industrial and commercial facilities, including closed foundries and properties currently used as salvage yards. The environmental impacts and blight associated with these brownfields have affected the city's growth efforts and resulted in the decline of adjacent neighborhoods. The loss of large manufacturing facilities has caused economic hardship. Between 1997 and 2007, the number of manufacturing jobs in West Allis declined by 51 percent. Cleanup and redevelopment conducted through the RLF grant are expected to attract new investment to West Allis, help the city grow, and create jobs for residents. Revolving Loan Fund Grant $750,000 for hazardous substances $250,000 for petroleum EPA has selected the City of West Allis for a brownfields revolving loan fund grant. The grant will be used to capitalize a revolving loan fund from which the City of West Allis will provide loans and subgrants to support cleanup activities for sites contaminated with hazardous substances and petroleum. Grant funds also will be used for marketing, cleanup planning, and community involvement activities. The city will focus on the Eastern Industrial Corridor and a truck terminal corridor along the city's busiest highway. 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 5 Brownfields Team (312)886-7576 EPA Region 5 Brownfields Web site (http://www.epa.gov/R5Brownfiel ds) Grant Recipient: City of West Allis,WI (414) 302-8468 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) E PA 560-F-128-096 May 2011 ------- |