>«0Sr4,
Ol\ Brownfields 1997 Assessment Pilot Fact Sheet
PKOV
v
East Palo Alto, CA
EPA Brownfields Initiative
EPA's Brownfields Program empowers states,
communities, and other stakeholders to work together to
prevent, assess, safely clean up, and sustain ably reuse
brownfields. Abrownfield 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 1 1, 2002, President George W. Bush signed into
law the Small Business Liability Relief and Brownfields
P^vitalization 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 Poegion 9 has selected the City of East Palo Alto as
a P^gional Brownfields Pilot. The Pv.egion has joined
with the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban
Development (HUD) to provide assistance to the city.
East Palo Alto has an ethnically diverse population of
approximately 25,000 within a 2.5 square mile area
According to the 1990 census, community residents are
36% minority, including African Americans, Latinos,
Pacific Islanders, and Asians. Incorporated in 1933, the
city inherited an area with inadequate infrastructure, low
sales and property tax revenues, no central business
district, and the 130-acre Pvavenswood Industrial Area.
The Pv.avenswood area overlooks wetlands and the San
Francisco Bay, and is located at the gateway to
technology-based Silicon Valley, making it an attractive
location for local industries. Pv.edevelopment has been
hampered by the perception of widespread
contamination.
Pilot Snapshot
Date of Announcement: 05/13/1997
Amount: $125,000
Profile: The pilot will target the 130-acre
Pvavenswood Industrial Area, made up of 59
properties and used for agricultural, residential,
commercial, and industrial activities.
Contacts
For farther information, including specific grant
contacts, additional grant information, brownfields
news and events, and publications and links, visit the
EPA Brownfields Web site
(http: //www. ep a. go v/brownfi el d s).
EPA Pv.egion 9 Brownfields Team
(415) 972-3091
EPA Pv.egion 9 Brownfields Web site
(http: //www. ep a. go v/regi on9/b ro wn fi el ds)
Grant Poecipient: City of East Palo Alto,CA
(650) 353-3121
EPA completed a Phase II site investigation in December
1996, which showed that contamination was far less than
originally expected. Pilot activities will include further
assessment of properties within the Pv.avenswood
Industrial Area
Obj ectives
The EPA pilot is focused on completing site assessment
efforts in the targeted area and beginning remediation
planning. East Palo Alto's goals are to redevelop a large
portion of the 130-acre Pvavenswood complex, create
newjob opportunities for residents, and increase the
city's tax base to improve community services. EPA and
HUD have teamed together to assist the city by
providing a federal staff liaison to work on brownfields
and economic development issues, coordinate federal
and state programs to meet the needs of East Palo Alto,
and identify assistance programs for which the city
qualifies. EPA also is assisting the city in community
environmental education and convening a Pv.avenswood
Industrial Area Stakeholders Group, which will make
land-use recommendations and identify a process for
implementation of the redevelopment plan.
Activities
Activities planned as part of this pilot include:
United States
Environmental
Protedicn Agency
Washington, DC 20450
Solid Waste
arc! Emergency
Response (5105T)
EPA500-F-97-117
Apr 97

-------
•	Working with the California Regional Water
Quality Control Board (CalEPA) to conduct a
screening-level investigation of soil and
groundwater contamination;
•	Determining the extent of soil and groundwater
pollution, and identifying areas where more
comprehensive studies may need to be
conducted;
•	Establishing a Ravenswood Industrial Area
Stakeholders Group to determine future land
uses with assistance from EPA and HUD;
•	Conducting outreach activities to attract
businesses to the area; and
•	Conducting community outreach and education
meetings to inform residents of the results of
EPA investigations.
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)
EPA 500-F-97-117
Apr 97

-------
>«0Sr4,
mo*
Brownfields 1997 Supplemental Assessment
Pilot Fact Sheet
City of East Palo Alto, CA
EPA Brownfields Initiative
EPA's Brownfields Program empowers states,
communities, and other stakeholders to work together to
prevent, assess, safely clean up, and sustain ably reuse
brownfields. Abrownfield 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 1 1, 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 City of East Palo Alto supplemental
assistance for its Brownfields Assessment Pilot. East
Palo Alto has an ethnically diverse population of
approximately 25,000 residents within a 2.5-square-mile
area. According to the 1990 Census, community
residents are 36 percent minority, including African
Americans, Latinos, Pacific Islanders, and Asians.
Incorporated in 1933, the city inherited an area with
inadequate infrastructure, low sales and property tax
revenues, no central business district, and the 130-acre
Raven swood Industrial Area (RIA). The RIA overlooks
wetlands and the San Francisco Bay and is located near
technology-based Silicon Valley, making it an attractive
location for local industries. Pv.edevelopment in the RIA,
however, has been hampered by the perception of
widespread contamination. The RIA Brownfields
Stakeholders Group met over a period of nine months,
making a series of overarching recommendations
regarding redevelopment of the area
Pilot Snapshot
Date of Announcement: 03/01/2000
Amount: $100,000
Profile: City of East Palo Alto, CA The Pilot will
target two adjacent sites at the mouth of the
Ravens wood Industrial Area for assessment, cleanup,
and redevelopment into a community-oriented
service center.
Contacts
For farther information, including specific grant
contacts, additional grant information, brownfields
news and events, and publications and links, visit the
EPA Brownfields Web site
(http: //www. ep a. go v/brownfi el d s).
EPA Pv.egion 9 Brownfields Team
(415) 972-3091
EPA Pv.egion 9 Brownfields Web site
(http: //www. ep a. go v/regi on9/b ro wn fi el ds)
Grant Poecipient: City of East Palo Alto,CA
(650) 353-3121
Obj ectives
East Palo Alto's objective is to continue efforts to
revitalize the RIA. Through the supplemental assistance
Pilot, the city will target two sites - the People's Plaza
site and a city-owned property - that sit adjacent to one
another at the entrance to the RIA Because of their
location. East Palo Alto plans to use these sites as
flagship projects to set the image, tone, and character of
fixture development in the area The city hopes that
redevelopment plans for these sites - a Family Resource
Center and a possible health clinic - will bring the RIA
into the "community fold," changing perception about
the area and encouraging community relationships with
the adjacent San Francisco Bay and wetlands. The
supplemental grant will provide the city with the
resources it needs to conduct assessments on these
properties and to develop site-specific land use plans
that will facilitate cleanup decisions and optimize site
reuse.
United States
Environmental
Protedicn Agency
Washington, DC 20450
Solid Waste
arc! Emergency
Response (5105T)
EPA500-F430-015
•apr 00

-------
To accomplish these objectives, the Pilot plans to:
•	Conduct site assessments to determine the nature
and extent of contamination at the two targeted
sites; and
•	Develop cleanup and site-specific land use plans
in conjunction with one another.
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
Solid Waste
and Emergency
Response(5105T)
EPA 500-F-00-015
Apr 00

-------