Brownfields 1998 Assessment Pilot Fact Sheet Montachusett Regional Planning Commission, MA


/ D \ Brownfields 1998 Assessment Pilot Fact Sheet
J Montachusett Regional Planning Commission, MA
PRO1"4
EPA Brownfields Initiative
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. 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. Additionally, funding support is
provided to state and tribal response programs through a
separate mechanism.
Background
EPA has selected the Montachusett Regional Planning
Commission (MRPC) for a Brownfields Pilot. The
MRPC encompasses 22 communities with a total
population of 223,865 in north- central Massachusetts.
High concentrations of manufacturing industries in some
cities as well as vast expanses of undeveloped towns
characterize the MRPC.
Wood, paper, and textile industries in the region have
been in decline since the early 1980s, creating a
patchwork of brownfields across the region. Today,
numerous abandoned and underused red-brick mills sit
along rivers and in central business districts. The impact
of brownfields has been greatest on the low- and
moderate-income and minority residents who live in the
neighborhoods immediately adjacent to the problem sites.
Since 1989, unemployment rates in the region have been
consistently higher than State and national levels.
Pilot Snapshot
Date of Announcement: 07/15/1998
Amount: $200,000
Profile: The Pilot will target the 22 communities
incorporating the Montachusett Regional Planning
Commission (MRPC).
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 1 Brownfields Team
(617)918-1424
EPA Region 1 Brownfields Web site
(http://www.epa.gov/regionl/brownfields)
Grant Recipient: Montachusett Regional Planning
Commission,MA
(978) 348-0646
Objectives
The MRPC plans to return at least two brownfields to
productive reuse within the two-year period of the Pilot.
Pilot funds will be used to solicit site-selection input
from the residents of areas impacted by brownfields;
prioritize sites based on redevelopment potential; and
perform environmental assessments on the targeted
sites. The MRPC will provide additional funding to
develop innovative zoning approaches and establish a
regional brownfields redevelopment agency.
Activities
Activities planned as part of this Pilot include:
•	Developing criteria for selection of sites to be
assessed by the Pilot;
•	Holding public meetings to obtain citizen input
on site selection and prioritization;
•	Conducting a maximum of eight Phase I site
assessments; and
United States	c
Environmental	anri Fmpflpn™	EPA 500-F-98-169
nil- a	ancl Emergency	. .
Protection Agency	Response (5105*0	Jul 98
Washington, DC 20450	^ v '

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• Conducting a maximum of two Phase II site
assessments.
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
and Emergency
Response (5105T)
Solid Waste
EPA 500-F-98-169
Jul 98

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/r^. Brownfields 1998 Supplemental Assessment
{^} Pilot Fact Sheet
%(	Montacchusett Regional Planning Commission, MA
EPA Brownfields Initiative
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. 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. Additionally, funding support is
provided to state and tribal response programs through a
separate mechanism.
Background
EPA awarded the Montachusett Regional Planning
Commission (MRPC) supplemental assistance for its
Brownfields Assessment Demonstration Pilot. The
MRPC encompasses 22 communities with a total
population of 223,865 in north-central Massachusetts.
High concentrations of manufacturing industries in some
cities as well as vast expanses of undeveloped towns
characterize the MRPC.
Wood, paper, and textile industries in the region have
been in decline since the early 1980s, creating a
patchwork of brownfields across the region. Today,
numerous abandoned and underused red-brick mills sit
along rivers and in central business districts. The impact
of brownfields has been greatest on the low- and
moderate-income and minority residents who live in the
neighborhoods immediately adjacent to the problem sites.
Since 1989, unemployment rates in the region have been
consistently higher than state and national levels.
Pilot Snapshot
Date of Announcement: 03/01/2000
Amount: $150,000
Profile: Montacchusett Regional Planning
Commission, MA. The Pilot targets at least six
priority brownfields for assessment, including at least
one brownfield that is qualified for greenspace
purposes.
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 1 Brownfields Team
(617)918-1424
EPA Region 1 Brownfields Web site
(http://www.epa.gov/regionl/brownfields)
Grant Recipient: Montachusett Regional Planning
Commission,MA
(978) 348-0646
Objectives
The Montachusett Region Brownfield Reuse Initiative
(MRBRI), created through the initial Pilot, was
established to develop and implement a reuse plan for
high-priority brownfields. The overall MRBRI
combines the region's comprehensive economic
development strategy to reuse brownfields with a
developing regional policy to mitigate sprawl into the
region's rural fabric. With the supplemental assistance,
the MRPC will expand on the theme of returning sites to
active industrial and commercial reuse to include
developing affordable housing and creating more
greenspace.
To accomplish these objectives, the Pilot plans to:
• Update the Massachusetts Department of
Environmental Protection database of
brownfields in the Montachusett region,
United States	c
Environmental	anri Fmpflpn™	EPA 500-F-00-035
nil- a	ancl Emergency	. __
Protection Agency	Response (5105*0	Apr°°
Washington, DC 20450	^ v '

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continuing use of the MRPC's geographic
information system (GIS) central database;
•	Select priority brownfields for further
investigation;
•	Conduct Phase I environmental assessments on at
least five non-greenspace brownfields;
•	Conduct Phase II environmental assessments at
two of these brownfields;
•	Conduct Phase II environmental assessments on
at least one brownfield qualified for greenspace
purposes; and
•	Conduct stakeholder involvement related to these
activities.
The cooperative agreement for this Pilot has not yet
been negotiated; therefore, activities described in this
fact sheet are subject to change.
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
and Emergency
Response (5105T)
Solid Waste
EPA 500-F-00-035
Apr 00

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