III 1 ill " gsm Mai iBr ¦¦¦ h&l,. ¦ EE! m - " 1,1 ! |nl"i » !!! EJ 9 P Ml i Ml 111 IIF : -— L/* Lan4 <§r Community Revrtalization BROWNFIELDS SUCCESS IN NEW ENGLAND BOCCELLI'S CAFE AND AUCTION HOUSE SI jl Kill all ¦¦¦ us sj [hi nii sh in mipa in in ^ ' ( M ',] BELLOWS FALLS, VERMONT Property Details Property Address: 46 Canal Street, Bellows Falls, VT 03061 Property Size: .13 acres Former Uses: Electric motor manufacturing, clothes manufacturing, truck garage, fuel storage, machine shop, storage Contaminants Found: Petroleum, Asbestos, Lead and other heavy metals, PAHs, PCE, TPHs, VOCs Current Uses: Cafe, Auction House Current Owner: S. Boccelli Project Partners Vermont Department of Environmental Conservation Funding Details EPA Brownflelds Assessment Grant: Of a $200,000 grant, $33,806 was used on this site Private Owner: Spent $370,000 on cleanup and redevelopment Project Highlights • Removed approximately nine tons of contaminated soil from the property • Removed and disposed of three 55-gallon drums • Created seven newjobs in the Village of Bellows Falls • Returned a contaminated, underutilized property to productive use • Continued the revitalization momentum begun by the Waypoint Visitors' Center project Drivers for Redevelopment: This property is located directly across the historic Bellows Falls Canal from the area's most successful brownfield project—a former rail yard that, after EPA Brownflelds grant-funded assessments and a $1.26 million redevelopment, became a Visitors' Center and home to the local Chamber of Commerce. This award-winning project has become a source of community pride and catalyzed other area brownfield projects, including the .13-acre site across the canal. The former industrial property was purchased by a businesswoman who planned to turn the underutilized site into a new cafe. Property History: This property has had a variety of uses dating back at least as far as 1885. From that time until 1901, the site had a residence along with a small, commercial building that was used for clothes manufacturing, electric motor construction, a gasoline stove shop, and a harness/carriage shop. Afire in 1920 destroyed both structures. The building that stands there now, a single stoiy, brick structure of approximately 3,200 square feet was built in 1927 by the White Brothers Milk Company, and used as a garage and washing facility for milk trucks. The company also installed an underground storage tank (UST) on the site for truck fuel. From the 1940s through the 1970s, the property was used as a woodworking and machine shop. It was operated as a scrap metal production and storage facility from 1980 through 1987. and after that was used to store nuts and bolts. These uses left contaminants including petroleum, total petroleum hydrocarbons, heavy metals, perchloroethylene, volatile organic compounds, lead, and poly aromatic hydrocarbons in the property's soil. The site was used to store nuts and bolts for nearly 15 years, until being purchased by Sharon Boccelli in 2004. That year, she enrolled the site into the Windliam Regional Brownflelds Reuse Initiative (WRBRI), which performed environmental testing on the property using EPA Brownflelds grant funds, with guidance and support from both EPA and the Vermont Department of Environmental Conservation. Project Results: Cleanup involved the removal of contaminated soil, as well as the property's long-dormant UST and the site's original building was restored and refurbished. In May 2006, the property's owner opened "Boccelli's on the Canal," which offers Italian specialty dining and gourmet foods on an eat-in or take-out basis. The store also sells antiques and collectables, and uses half of the building as an auction house that opened in October 2006. This $370,000 cleanup and redevelopment project, funded by the property's owner, created seven jobs. Project Timeline 1989 Property last used for industrial activity 2003 Visitors' Center, built on a former brownfield, opens across the canal 2004 Property purchased and enrolled in the WRBRI 2005 Assessments completed; cleanup begins 2006 Boccelli's Cafe opens; auction house opens later that year January 2008 Local Contact: Susan McMahon, Windham Regional Commission, at (802) 257-4547 xl 14 or susaii@ssver.net ------- |