/ D \ Brownfields 1997 Assessment Pilot Fact Sheet
High Point, NC
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 selected the City of High Point as a Brownfields
Pilot. As one of North Carolina's leading industrial
centers, High Point maintains an extensive furniture
manufacturing industry. The city established an
industrial redevelopment program in the West Macedonia
Revitalization Area, southeast of the central business
district. The area is characterized by vacant, underused,
and deteriorating industrial buildings, small clusters of
blighted residential dwellings, and an abundance of
undeveloped land.
Redevelopment within the industrial portion of the West
Macedonia Revitalization Area has been limited.
Opportunities for redevelopment have been hampered by
both the availability of ample "greenfield" sites outside
of the city and by known or suspected environmental
contamination resulting from previous furniture and
textile production. Experts from the University of North
Carolina's Center for the Study of Social Issues will join
the city in managing the Pilot and conducting economic
market analysis.
Pilot Snapshot
Date of Announcement: 09/01/1997
Amount: $200,000
Profile: The Pilot targets the West Macedonia
Revitalization Area, southeast of downtown High
Point.
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 4 Brownfields Team
(404) 562-8792
EPA Region 4 Brownfields Web site
(http ://www .epa.gov/region4/waste/bf)
Grant Recipient: High Point, NC
(336)883-3346
Objectives
High Point's objectives were to revitalize the West
Macedonia Revitalization Area and develop a model for
addressing brownfield sites. The Pilot helped the city to
assess brownfield sites, plan site cleanup, and foster
opportunities for public/private partnerships.
Activities
The Pilot has:
•	Established a 40-member Brownfields Steering
Committee made up of West Macedonia
Revitalization Area residents and the larger
community;
•	Created the Macedonia Neighborhood
Association to give residents and business people
in the West Macedonia community the
opportunity to play an active role in the
revitalization effort;
•	Developed a Community Needs Assessment
which highlighted the basic areas of concern for
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the West Macedonia community for both
residents and businesses operating in the area;
•	Completed Phase I environmental assessments on
23 properties and Phase II assessments on 14 of
the 23 sites within the target area. Based on the
assessments, it was determined that 21 properties
do not require cleanups. A more detailed Phase
III report was prepared recommending cleanup
methods for the remaining two sites;
•	Completed a reuse study and identified several
viable reuses for the targeted area, including
flexible industrial/warehouse space, a small
business incubator, and office space; and
•	Hosted eight focus group meetings to gather
community input on the redevelopment plan.
Leveraging Other Activities
Experience with the High Point Pilot has been a catalyst
for related activities, including the following:
•	The Pilot leveraged a total of $1,007,000 in
redevelopment/construction funding, including
$173,000 from the county's portion of federal
Home Investment Partnership Program (HOME)
funds, $100,000 from the city's general fund for
capital improvement projects, and $734,000 from
HUD's Community Development Block Grant
entitlement for revitalization activities.
•	The city received a $625,000 U.S. Department of
Justice Weed and Seed grant for increasing
awareness of safety programs and police
involvement which includes the West Macedonia
neighborhood.
•	The University of North Carolina at Greensboro
(UNCG) received a Community Outreach
Partnership Center grant of $399,000 from the
U.S. Housing and Urban Development to fund
community building activities in the target area.
•	UNCG also received an award of $300,000 from
the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban
Development for a YouthBuild grant targeted to
enroll dropout youths in Guilford Technical
Community College's job training program to
prepare them for the construction trades. A
partnership with the Homebuilders Association
will involve the apprentices working on homes in
the Macedonia neighborhood.
•	The City Council officially adopted the West
Macedonia Redevelopment Plan on July 15,
1999. The plan recommends a variety of
strategies to encourage commercial and industrial
revitalization, promote home ownership and
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create additional open space and recreational
opportunities for West Macedonial residents.
The plan also identifies potential workforce
needs once redevelopment takes place.
• The High Point Economic Development
Corporation proposed a revised economic
incentives policy for the city designed to promote
economic investment in High Point's older
industrial and commercial districts by reducing
the minimum investment required to be eligible
for incentives. The policy was approved by the
City Council on November 1, 1999, and West
Macedonia is one of the areas targeted under the
new policy.
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-00-264
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