/r^. Brownfields 2000 Revolving Loan Fund Pilot IW * Fact Sheet Township of Neville, PA 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 The Township of Neville is an island on the Ohio River in Allegheny County, Pennsylvania. Neville was once the leading producer of amphibious assault vehicles used in World War II. With a shifting of the economy and the country's defense needs, manufacturers have left the island. The shipyard closed almost 15 years ago and with other sites have laid vacant or underutilized. Business closures have caused a 40 percent decrease in the Township's tax base, from approximately $30 million to $18 million. The median household income in the Township ranks in the lower half of Allegheny communities. The Township has identified approximately 30 brownfield sites, comprising roughly one-third of the Island's property. Brownfields sites present development opportunities due to the Island's proximity to downtown Pittsburgh and the Greater Pittsburgh International Airport. Pilot Snapshot Date of Announcement: 05/01/2000 Amount: $500,000 Profile: Township of Neville 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 3 Brownfields Team (215)814-3129 EPA Region 3 Brownfields Web site (http ://www .epa.gov/reg3hwmd/bf-lr) Grant Recipient: Township of Neville, PA (412) 264-3442 Objectives Neville's BCRLF goals are to cleanup brownfields sites, revitalize the tax base, and provide sustainable wage employment with an emphasis on mixed zoning re-use. The criteria to be used to select sites include the ability to increase jobs and tax revenue, advance the goals of the Township's new comprehensive plan, provide for public health through cleanup of contamination, engage private owners, and develop a model for replication by other small communities. Initially, Neville's BCRLF will target three sites: a light metals site; a shipyard site; and the Chevron site. Activities Fund Structure and Operations The Township of Neville will serve as lead agency. The Township Engineer will serve as site manager. A fund manager will be selected. Neville will commit $15,000 to the BCRLF program. The State of Pennsylvania and Allegheny County also are in the process of committing funding in the amounts United States c Environmental anri Fmpflpn™ EPA 500-F-00-153 nil- a ancl Emergency .. __ Protection Agency Response (5105T) MaV00 Washington, DC 20450 ^ v ' ------- of $55,000 and $45,000, respectively. The State's Industrial Sites Reuse Program will enable the Neville Island Development Assosiation to acquire sites and perform cleanups directly. Neville Township anticipates that several private landowners also will use the BCRLF loans and State funds to clean up their brownfields properties. Use of BCRLF Pilot funds must be in accordance with CERCLA, and all CERCLA restrictions on use of funding also apply to BCRLF funds. 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-00-153 May 00 ------- |