Office of Land and Emergency Management (5105 i)
; j	)	EPA 560-F-17-2091 October 20171 www.epa.gov/brownfiejjs
Jf t.	Rural Revitalization:
^ 'iL ¦ 4 HowtPA's Brownfields Program Helps
" Kevitalize Small, Rural,uand Tribal Communities
United States
Environmental Protection
Agency
Brownfields are vacant and
underused parcels of land that can
be eyesores and may threaten
public health. A brown field is a
"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.
EPA's Brownfields Program provides grants and
technical assistance that helps communities of all sizes
address their brownfields cleanup and redevelopment
challenges. Communities can access EPA's brownfields
resources through:
•	Competitive grants for site assessment, cleanup,
area-wide planning, and environmental job training
programs.
•	Technical assistance opportunities, including:
-	Site-specific targeted brownfields assessment (TBA).
-	Support from their state or tribal response program.
-	Technical assistance programs and tools that
provide communities with expertise in acquiring,
assessing, and cleaning up brownfields
properties; community involvement; and securing
redevelopment funds.
Small, rural, and tribal communities can use EPA
resources to face several unique challenges at their
brownfield sites, including:
•	Contaminant issues such as pesticide and lime
wastes associated with manufacturing activities and
wastes from mining operations.
•	Higher supply and lower demand for land that often
translates into dilapidated or abandoned properties
(e.g., mills, manufacturing sites, gas stations,
commercial buildings, etc.) that remain vacant and
unused.
•	Fewer people equals fewer resources, which often
results in more limited planning capacity, fewer
capital funding and investment options, lower
developer interest and less familiarity with how to
clean up and reuse brownfields.
Success Rates Among Brownfields Grant Applicants
(FY10-FY17)
ro 20%
B 15%
10-20K 20-50K 50-100K >100K
Applicant Community Population
Tribes
Since 2010, EPA has awarded
over 2,200 competitive grants to
communities to support brownfields
revitalization. Success rates shown
here are based on the number of grant
applications received versus number of
grants selected for award.
Between 2010 and 2017, EPA awarded
2% of all competitive brownfields
grants to tribal recipients, 13% to
recipients from communities under
10,000 people; 23% to recipients from
communities under 20,000 people; and
56% to recipients from communities
under 100,000 people.
Big Differences in Small, Rural, and
Header photo: HopeHealth
Medical Center during
construction, Florence, SC.
Above photo: Revitalized
Moretz Mill, Hickory, NC.
ng
Tribal Communities
Refashioning Hickory's Historic Textile Mills
Hickory, North Carolina (population: 40,010) has a
new brewery, fitness center, restaurants, retail and
office spaces, and new events space—all built on two
former brownfields. The City of Hickory, Lenoir-Rhyne
University, local developers, and other stakeholders
worked together on redevelopment plans for two former
hosiery mills, Hollar Mills and Moretz Mills, located
downtown, along Lenoir Rhyne Boulevard.
• EPA awarded a brownfields assessment grant to
the City to conduct Phase I and II environmental
site assessments and develop property reuse plans
for the vacant mills. These assessments identified
contaminants that were removed from the site or
encapsulated under pavement. These assessments
opened the door for redevelopment of the site.
The City awarded redevelopment funds for both
properties under its Vacant Building Revitalization
and Demolition Grant program, which prioritizes
suspected brownfields.
Hollar Mills reopened in 2014; it includes retail
shops, restaurants, events space, and a brewer/.
Moretz Mill reopened in April 2015; it houses a
fitness center, event venue, retail, and office space.

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Hollar Mills is now home to
restaurants, retail shops and
a 10,000-square-foot event
venue that can accommodate
Photos from left to right: Students touring the Oliverio's Pepper Plant facility; Toksook Bay's Early Childhood Learning and Knowledge Center; and
Graduates of Nye County's Job Training Program.
Leveraged Investments Bring Medical Center
into Downtown Florence
In February 2016, the HopeHealth Medical Plaza
opened its doors on the site of a former brownfield
in downtown Florence, South Carolina (population:
38,317). The rural city used brownfields funding from
several sources to assess, clean up, and redevelop the
former Bush's Recycling Center, which operated for
more than 50 years. The City involved the community
throughout the redevelopment process.
To fund this cleanup and redevelopment, the City used:
•	An EPA Brownfields assessment grant and a targeted
brownfield assessment (TBA) from the state to conduct
environmental site assessments on the property.
•	A grant from a local philanthropy, the Drs. Bruce and
Lee Foundation, to purchase the site.
•	An EPA Brownfields cleanup grant and South
Carolina's Brownfields cleanup revolving loan fund to
complete cleanup activities at the site.
A Successful Transformation: Oliverio's Italian
Style Peppers
Italian-style peppers now are being produced at a new
facility in Clarksburg, West Virginia (population: 16,035),
The Oliverio's Italian Style Peppers plant was built on
the site of the former Quality Foundry, a ferrous metal
company that operated from 1920 to 1980 and produced
cast iron with high nickel content. After site cleanup and
construction, the expanded facility opened in 2013.
To fund this cleanup and redevelopment, the City:
« Purchased the property to make it available for
development.
•	Used an EPA Brownfields assessment grant
to conduct an environmental site assessment,
which identified lead and arsenic in soils, and roof
materials and cooling boards containing inorganic
contaminants.
•	Entered into the state's Voluntary Remediation
Program and cleaned up the site.
Supporting Revitalization and Sustainability on
Tribal Lands
Many tribes use EPA funding to establish and enhance
tribal response programs that support brownfields
cleanup and reuse. Tribal priorities often include cleaning
up and reusing contaminated land for non-economic
purposes, such as returning land to cultural use.
« The City of Toksook Bay is a
traditional Yupik coastal village
located on Nelson Island, Alaska
(population: 1,197). When its
existing early childhood facility
was plagued by flooding, the
Nunakauiak Yupik Corporation
(the native village corporation
for Toksook Bay) considered
the site of a former airport as
an ideal location to relocate an Early Childhood
Learning and Knowledge Center.
« On behalf of the City, the Rural Alaska Community
Action Program (RurAL CAP) requested EPA
assistance to assess the former airport for petroleum
contamination.
* EPA performed a TBA; the results found no
petroleum contamination, so the redevelopment
moved forward.
» Today, the site is an energy-efficient early childhood
center that provides invaluable resources to
local families, and continues the City's ten-year
partnership with RurAL CAP to administer child
development programs, leverage local resources,
and community support.
Bringing Environmental Job Training
Opportunities to Rural Nevada
Nye County (population: 42,500) is a large rural county
in south-central Nevada with numerous brownfield sites,
including abandoned gas stations and methamphetamine
labs. With 13% of the population unemployed, the county
recognized the great need for job training opportunities—
particularly environmental workforce programs that
could help address its brownfield challenges.
•	Nye County focused its job training program in the
rural community of Pahrump and secured three EPA
Environmental Workforce Development and Job
Training (EWDJT) grants.
•	EPA funds enabled Nye County to train 134
individuals and place 107 of those individuals in the
environmental field. Average starting wage for newly
employed workers is $13.84 per hour.
« Graduates earn certifications in OSHA 40-hour
Hazardous Waste Operations and Emergency
Response, lead and asbestos abatement, and other
enhanced environmental and safety trainings.
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