O - Brownfields 2015 Area-Wide Planning Grant Fact Sheet Duluth, MN pro^vC" 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. In 2002, the Small Business Liability Relief and Brownfields Revitalization Act was passed to help states and communities around the country clean up and revitalize brownfields sites. Under this law, EPA provides financial assistance to eligible applicants through competitive grant programs for brownfields site assessment, site cleanup, revolving loan funds, area-wide planning, and job training. Additional funding support is provided to state and tribal response programs through a separate mechanism. Brownfields Area-Wide Planning Program EPA's Brownfields Area-Wide Planning Program assists communities in responding to local brownfields challenges, particularly where multiple brownfield sites are in close proximity, connected by infrastructure, and limit the economic, environmental and social prosperity of their surroundings. This program enhances EPA's core brownfields assistance programs by providing grant funding to communities so they can perform the research needed to develop an area-wide plan and implementation strategies for brownfields assessment, cleanup, and reuse. The resulting area-wide plans provide direction for future brownfields area improvements that are protective of public health and the environment, economically viable, and reflective of the community's vision for the area. Project Description $200,000.00 EPA has selected the City of Duluth as a Brownfields Area-Wide Planning Grant recipient. The city will work with the community and other stakeholders to develop an area-wide plan and implementation strategy for the Western Port Area Neighborhoods (WPAN). The WPAN includes two residential neighborhoods bounded by a 55-acre former rail yard, a 255-acre former industrial site, and an interstate highway. The grant will provide an opportunity to move the collective vision of extant plans for the WPAN toward their much-needed implementation. Grant funds will be a key resource to help the city work with citizens to prioritize projects and establish a specific implementation strategy. The project area will be evaluated for its economic, market, infrastructure, traffic, urban design, connectivity, and brownfield characteristics. Brownfield site reuse planning will be done on five catalyst sites, and the resulting area-wide plan will provide a strategic framework that includes prioritization, timelines, and necessary funding. Key partners who will work with the city on this project include St. Louis River Alliance, Minnesota Brownfields, West Duluth Business Club, Duluth Seaway Port Authority, Local Initiatives Support Corporation, Duluth Housing and Redevelopment Authority, Duluth-Superior Metropolitan Interstate Planning Commission, Minnesota Pollution Control Agency, and Minnesota Department of Employment and Economic Development. 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). United States _ . w__tp Environmental EPA 560-F-15-013 Protection Agency Re™S(51<»T) M,rdl2015 Washington, DC 20450 Kesponse (Si us ) ------- EPA Region 5 Brownfields Team (312)353-8827 EPA Region 5 Brownfields Web site (http: //www.epa. go v/region5brownfields/) Grant Recipient: City of Duluth, Minnesota, MN (218)730-5324 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 560-F-15-013 March 2015 ------- |