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Brownfields 1999 Assessment Pilot Fact Sheet
Antrim County, Ml
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 has selected Antrim County, Michigan for a
Brownfields Pilot. The Mancelona Community, which is
the Pilot's target area, consists of Mancelona Township
(population 3,173), Custer Township (population 630),
and the Village of Mancelona (population 1,370). This
rural and impoverished area is located 35 miles northeast
of Traverse City and 200 miles northwest of Detroit. The
area is known for its pristine, natural beauty, and relies
heavily on tourism to support the local economy. The
Village and Township of Mancelona have
unemployment rates of approximately 12 percent, while
the unemployment rate in Custer is approximately 17
percent. The percentage of the population living below
the poverty level is 12.9 percent in Custer, 18.3 percent in
Mancelona Township, and 24.7 percent in the Village of
Mancelona.
Historically, the community supported the timber and
iron works industries. These industries were further
supported by a railroad, which bisects the target area.
With the decline in these industries, the county has been
left with reduced economic opportunities and a legacy of
potential environmental contamination. Contamination
has already been identified in groundwater plumes,
posing a threat to local drinking water. In addition,
contaminants from existing area industry-automotive
Pilot Snapshot
Date of Announcement: 03/01/1999
Amount: $200,000
Profile: The Pilot targets properties in the
Mancelona Community, which includes the
Mancelona and Custer Townships, and the Village of
Mancelona.
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/R5Brownfields)
Grant Recipient: Antrim County, MI
(616) 533-6265
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Objectives
The Mancelona Community has a redevelopment vision
that includes using partnerships to expand affordable
housing, recreational, and industrial and commercial
opportunities in the community. The county will
identify, prioritize, assess, and position its brownfields
sites for these redevelopment opportunities. The Pilot
will fund the key environmental activities necessary for
the community to attain its objectives.
Activities
Activities planned as part of this Pilot include:
•	Using an Environmental Real Estate Assessment
to create a dynamic model that ranks prospective
brownfields properties;
•	Performing Phase I and II environmental site
assessments on five to eight brownfields, with a
preference for publicly owned properties;
•	Identifying a maximum of three of the targeted
United States
Environmental
Protection Agency
Washington, DC 20450
Solid Waste
and Emergency
Response (5105T)
EPA 500-F-99-003
Mar 99

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and are undergoing investigation. The Pilot will focus on
properties along the US-131, M-55, M-88, and County
Road 571 corridors, as well as properties located outside
of the Mancelona Tar Lake Superfund site.
sites and creating redevelopment plans for those
sites consistent with overall community plans;
•	Building upon existing community involvement
mechanisms for land-use planning and health
and human services;
•	Investigating various state funding options to
leverage cleanup and redevelopment activities;
and
•	Enhancing the capacity-building of local
government, non-profit organizations, and the
community to ensure sustainability after the grant
period.
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.
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Protection Agency	Response (5105T)	Mar 99
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