Brownfields 2011 Assessment Grant Fact Sheet
               Mesa, AZ
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 Mesa was selected to receive two brownfields
assessment grants. Mesa (population 449,818) is in the
Phoenix metropolitan  area of Maricopa County. Mesa's
economy originally depended heavily on agriculture,
particularly cotton and livestock. Falcon Field Airport and
Williams Air Force  Base were built in Mesa in 1941 to
train World War II pilots. After the war, many military
families settled in Mesa. Main Street became a central
transportation route through the city, resulting in many
new businesses. In the 1980s, a new major freeway
resulted in an exodus of businesses from Main Street,
many of which used hazardous substances and petroleum
products. The result was an area with increasing poverty
rates, a declining central city core, and vacant and
deteriorating buildings. There are 60 brownfields in the
target area. Assessment of brownfields will support the
construction of the Light Rail Extension and be a catalyst
for the city's Neighborhood Plan to guide development
and attract businesses.
                     Assessment Grants

                     $200,000 for hazardous substances
                     $200,000 for petroleum

                     EPA has selected the City of Mesa for two
                     brownfields assessment grants. Community-wide
                     hazardous substances grant funds will be used to
                     conduct 20 Phase I and four Phase II
                     environmental site assessments in the area of the
                     proposed 3.1-mile extension of the regional Light
                     Rail system along Main Street. Petroleum grant
                     funds will be used to conduct 26 Phase I and six
                     Phase II environmental site assessments in the
                     same area. Grant funds also will be used to
                     conduct community involvement activities.
                     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 9 Brownfields Team
                     415-972-3364
                     EPA Region 9 Brownfields Web site
                     (http://www.epa.gov/region9/bro wnfields)

                     Grant Recipient: City of Mesa,AZ
                     480-644-4366

                     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)
EPA560-F-128-114
       May 2011

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