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Brownfields 2005 Assessment Grant Fact Sheet
Cuyahoga County, OH
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. 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.
Community Description
Cuyahoga County was selected to receive two brownfields
assessment grants. Cuyahoga County has the largest
population of any Ohio county, with 1,393,978 residents.
The most recent economic recession has had a serious
impact on county residents and businesses. Between 2000
and 2004, the county lost 63,900 jobs, which represents
more than eight percent of its employment base.
Cleveland, a federally designated Empowerment Zone in
the heart of Cuyahoga County, has been particularly
impacted by the loss of jobs in the area. Cleveland has the
highest poverty rate, 31.3 percent, of all of the nation's
large metropolitan areas. Nearly one-half of the city's
children live in poverty. Cuyahoga has identified an
estimated 18,000 brownfields properties that cover more
than 4,600 acres, mostly in Cleveland and its first-ring
suburban communities. With little developable land
remaining, Cuyahoga will become the only fully
developed county in Ohio within the next decade. Since
2000, more than 1,500 jobs have been created or retained
on former county brownfields sites. Assessment and
cleanup of additional brownfields properties will help
Cuyahoga continue this momentum to retain and create
jobs, increase earnings and property values, and reduce
public health risks to county residents.
Assessment Grants
$200,000 for hazardous subsances
$200,000 for petroleum
EPA has selected Cuyahoga County for two
brownfields assessment grants. Hazardous
substances grant funds will be used to support
community outreach activities and perform Phase I
and II environmental site assessments on
properties throughout the county. Petroleum funds
will be used to perform the same tasks at sites with
potential petroleum contamination. These funds
will help sustain the county's existing Brownfield
Redevelopment Fund Community Assessment
Initiative program.
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 5 Brownfields Team
(312) 886-7576
EPA Region 5 Brownfields Web site
(http://www.epa.gov/R5Brownfiel ds)
Grant Recipient: Cuyahoga County,OH
(216) 443-8064
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 560-F-05-194
May 2005

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