Revitalizing Southeastern Communities A Brownfields Toolkit Economic Development Administration — Beefing Up Brownfields Infrastructure in Kansas City KSIMO By establishing a strong partnership with the Economic Development Administration (EDA), the neighboring cities of Kansas City, Missouri and Kansas City, Kansas have been able to successfully rebuild sewer infrastructure and revitalize an area known as the Central Industrial District (CID). This urban industrial area straddles the Missouri and Kansas state lines and was once a national center for stockyard, meatpacking, agriculture, railroad and manufacturing industries. However, decades of catastrophic flooding, economic dislocation and deferred maintenance caused severe deterioration in the CID to the point where damaging sewer overflows became routine. As a result, many businesses abandoned the area. The two cities are now working to redevelop the CID and return it to a manufacturing and retail area for local residents to enjoy. In order to realize this vision for the CID, the cities turned to EDA, which awarded them a $1 million EDA public works grant to rescue the industrial area from the brink of physical and economic collapse. With this grant, the cities have achieved major success. For instance, three extensive CID brownfield sites have been cleaned up and transformed into viable property available for future development. This modest grant has now leveraged more than $100 million in new private investment (including a $17 million industrial expansion in the CID by the Faultless Starch / Bon Ami Company) and $5 I million in public infrastructure. One showcase project, the Lewis & Clark Redevelopment Project, was awarded the 2000 Phoenix Award for Excellence in Brownfields Redevelopment in EPA Region 7. Contacts: Andy Bracker City of Kansas City 816-513-3002 andrew_bracker@kcmo.org Economic Development Administration 202-482-2309 www.doc.gov/eda ------- Revitalizing Southeastern Communities A Brownfields Toolkit U.S. Army Corps of Engineers — Dredging Up the Industrial Past and Channeling a Revitalized Waterfront in Glen Cove, NY Strategically situated adjacent to Long Island Sound and along Glen Cove Creek, Glen Cove, New York was the industrial center of Long Island's Gold Coast from the late 1800s to the mid 1900s. Years of industrial activity have left a mark on Glen Cove's waterfront, and the City now faces the responsibility of revitalizing this once-vibrant area by reclaiming a cluster of brownfield sites along a mile of Glen Cove's waterfront, adjacent to the downtown. By reversing the physical decline of the waterfront district, restoring environmental quality, and improving economic vitality, Glen Cove is transforming this blighted area into a regional tourist destination with increased greenspace and waterside attractions. In 2003, the Glen Cove Industrial Development Agency signed a Land Disposition Agreement with Glen Isle Development, LLC to develop a hotel, a conference center, possible residential units, restaurants, retail shops, parks, and a pedestrian/bicycle esplanade. To accomplish this waterfront revitalization plan, the City is collaborating with county, state, and federal agencies. This collaboration has enabled Glen Cove to leverage more than $40 million in funding and technical assistance. The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers is one federal agency that is providing invaluable assistance to Glen Cove. Through an interagency agreement with EPA, the Corps conducted an area-wide characterization study of contamination and sediment inputs from brownfields at the terminal end of Glen Cove Creek. This study helped the City develop an effective revitalization plan for this waterfront area, which is a visual focal point for the Creek. In addition, the Corps performed bulkheading and maintenance dredging of the federal navigation channel in Glen Cove Creek, properly disposing of the contaminated material and equipment. Since working with the Corps requires match funding from the local government, the City obtained a $135,000 appropriation through its Members of Congress to complete this dredging project. The Corps has also provided valuable planning and engineering assistance to develop conceptual plans for improving vital transportation access to the waterfront area. By focusing on the restoration of Glen Cove Creek, the Army Corps of Engineers is helping the City of Glen Cove realize its vision of a revitalized waterfront district that will attract tourists from around the country. Contacts: Cara Longworth U.S. Army Corps of Engineers Executive Director New York District Glen Cove Community Development Agency 212-264-0100 5 16-676-1625 www.nan.usace.army.mil/index.htm www.glencove-li.com/ ------- ------- Revitalizing Southeastern Communities A Brownfields Toolkit Department of Housing and Urban Development — Building Blocks for Brownfields Revitalization in Los Angeles, CA Los Angeles has created a local Brownfields Team with members from the Mayor's Office of Economic Development, the Community Redevelopment Agency, the Environmental Affairs Department, the Community Development Department, the City Council's Chief Legislative Analyst Office, and other departments and agencies as needed. With assistance from HUD and other federal agencies, the Los Angeles Brownfields Team is rehabilitating and revitalizing three demonstration sites, in addition to granting money from a newly-established Brownfields Revitalization Fund. The goal of this local-federal partnership is to develop effective strategies to enable the remediation and redevelopment of brownfields throughout Los Angeles, particularly in disadvantaged communities. The rehabilitation of the Goodyear Industrial Tract site in Los Angeles is an example of one demonstration site that has significantly benefited from the local-Hl!D partnership. Originally the site of a Goodyear Tire manufacturing plant, this 208 acre industrial area is located in South Central Los Angeles near the high speed, high capacity Alameda Corridor. The Goodyear Industrial Tract Site is occupied by 325 small industrial businesses and is surrounded by residential neighborhoods. Due to past uses, the site contains an unknown number of contaminated land parcels. Potential contamination concerns include PCBs, volatile organic compounds (VOCs), petroleum hydrocarbons, and pesticides. As a result, business owners in the Goodyear Industrial Tract have been unable to obtain financing for expansion and remodeling. The contamination, coupled with security and transportation infrastructure concerns, have hindered efforts to recruit new business to the area. Determined to create a long-term economic recovery program for the property, the City Brownfields Team assembled an array of federal and local resources. HUD awarded the City a $12.1 million Brownfields Economic Development Initiative (BEDI) package, including $1.7 million in grants and $10.4 million in Section 108 guaranteed loans. BEDI is a competitive grant program that HUD administers to assist communities with the redevelopment of brownfields through projects that increase economic opportunities for low- to moderate-income people, such as job creation and strengthening the local tax base. BEDI grants must be used in conjunction with a Section 108-backed loan, provided through HUD's Community Development Block Grant (CDBG) program. Los Angeles has used its federal money to accomplish the following: fence the site, monitor access, clean up abandoned rail spurs, rebuild infrastructure, and provide businesses with the support they need to expand and address contamination-related issues. Through its partnership with HUD and other funding sources, including $300,000 from the City's Brownfields Revitalization Fund, the Los Angeles Brownfields Team plans to develop a revitalized business community that offers such attractions as a supermarket and full-service retail shopping center on the Goodyear Industrial Tract. The Brownfields Team has also used a portion of its annual HUD CDBG money to establish a $4.45 million local Brownfields Revitalization Fund. The Brownfields Revitalization Fund provides grants for ------- assessment, acquisition, remediation, and community involvement activities at brownfield sites within the City. In addition to the $300,000 grant to the Goodyear Industrial Tract, the L.A. Brownfields Team used $350,000 from the Fund to create a database of parcel information, identify the scope and costs of soil cleanup, and provide economic development and marketing studies to target appropriate reuses for another demonstration site. Contact: Noemi Emeric Los Angeles Environmental Affairs Department 213-978-0872 www.ci.la.ca.us/ead/labf/index.htm U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development Office of Community Planning and Development 202-708-1 I 12 www.hud.gov/offices/cpd/economicdevelopment/programs/bedi/index.cfm ------- Revitalizing Southeastern Communities A Brownfields Toolkit U.S. Department of Transportation — On the Track Toward Revitalization in Stamford, CT The City of Stamford, Connecticut is partnering with the Connecticut Department of Transportation, the Southwestern Regional Planning Agency, and federal agencies, including the U.S. Department of Transportation (DOT), to make major transportation improvements that are critical to the City's revitalization plans. The Stamford Urban Transitway will facilitate access for buses and high occupancy vehicles traveling between Interstate 95 and the Stamford Intermodal Transportation Center — one of the busiest commuter rail and bus stations in America. The Stamford Urban Transitway will improve pedestrian access, and enhance the implementation of intelligent transportation systems. The project will also include new sidewalks and bicycle lanes on either side of the roadway, and upgraded drainage systems to accommodate traffic needs and enhance the transportation network for an area targeted for revitalization. The Center currently provides a major transfer point for local bus and employer shuttle service, and provides access to existing Amtrak and Metro-North rail service. In order to accommodate the anticipated growth in commuter capacity at the Transportation Center, the rail platform has been expanded and a 1,200-space parking facility has been constructed. As exemplified by the Stamford Urban Transitway, DOT provides states and municipalities with the flexibility to redevelop brownfields and provide access to brownfields through federally-funded transportation projects. DOT encourages state and local transportation agencies to develop transportation improvement programs in conjunction with brownfields remediation and redevelopment efforts, provided that the brownfield sites necessitate the proposed transportation improvement, and the cleanup and liability costs are reasonable in relation to the cost and public benefit of the project. DOT's brownfields policy is intended to contribute to the reuse of abandoned and blighted land, conservation of open space, better transportation, improved communities, and greater economic vitality. The estimated cost for the Stamford Urban Transitway is approximately $70 million, including financing from the City of Stamford, and substantial funding from DOT's Federal Transit Administration New Starts Program, and the Federal Highway Administration's Surface Transportation Program. The New Starts Program is a federal and local cooperative program designed for the planning and construction of transit projects. DOT's funds will enable the Stamford Urban Transitway to improve transit operations, safety, and efficiency and to encourage public transportation and non-motorized modes of transportation to accommodate current and future traffic needs. In addition, the Transitway will be a critical catalyst for the redevelopment of Stamford's south end which contains numerous brownfield properties. Construction of the Stamford Urban Transitway is scheduled to begin during 2006. ------- Contacts: City of Stamford Engineering Bureau 203-977-5796 www.ci.stamford.ct.us/Engineering/UrbanTransitway/default.asp U.S. Department of Transportation Federal Transit Administration 202-366-1734 www.fta.dot.gov/office/planning/ep/subjarea/hazmat.html ------- Revitalizing Southeastern Communities A Brownfields Toolkit Department of Justice — Weeding out Crime, Seeding Revitalization in Providence> Rl After the State of Rhode Island was selected as a Brownfields Showcase Community in 1998, the City of Providence received official recognition from the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) in 1999 as the first "Weed and Seed" site in Rhode Island. Operation Weed and Seed is a DOJ community-based initiative that provides an innovative and comprehensive approach to law enforcement, crime prevention, and community revitalization. The Operation Weed and Seed strategy aims to prevent, control, and reduce violent crime, drug abuse, and gang activity in targeted high-crime neighborhoods. The strategy involves a two-pronged approach: (I) law enforcement activities "weed out" criminals who engage in violent crime and drug abuse within the project site; and (2) human services, including prevention, intervention and treatment, and community development, "seed" the community to facilitate neighborhood revitalization. Community policing serves as a link between the weeding and seeding activities. Recognizing that crime prevention goes hand in hand with community revitalization, the Department of Justice became an active participant in the federal brownfields partnership. DOJ initially offered up to $50,000 in flexible Operation Weed and Seed funding to be used at the discretion of local communities for brownfields activities, including: (I) conducting education and outreach to citizens and businesses; (2) building partnerships among stakeholders; (3) planning community involvement and environmental justice initiatives; (4) assessing the potential reuse of brownfield sites; (5) rehabilitating existing facilities; (6) contributing to local employment and training activities; and (7) assisting non-profit organizations with economic development. Providence has received training, technical assistance, and $625,000 over three years from DOJ for its Weed and Seed initiative. The federal funds are administered through the Providence Police Department, as the fiscal agent, with Nickerson Community Center, a non-profit social service agency, serving as the administering agency. Providence has targeted the funding towards youth services and additional community policing in the neighborhood of Olneyville. As one of the oldest neighborhoods in Providence, Olneyville has suffered from significant disinvestments over the past thirty years. Once a leading industrial center, employment declined during the second half of the 20th century and Olneyville became largely depopulated, with a high level of poverty amongst remaining residents. The Weed and Seed coalition in Providence has received further funding through DOJ's Drug-Free Communities Support Program for a drug prevention proposal. The federal grant is being used to strengthen existing efforts to prevent substance abuse in Olneyville. The coalition is developing a youth-based curriculum focusing on reduction of negative behaviors among at-risk Southeast Asian youth, including substance abuse, sexual activity, violence, and destruction of property; and increasing positive, rewarding lifestyles through altering group norms and beliefs. ------- In addition, a neighborhood revitalization plan is being developed, which will address housing, neighborhood services, open space/recreation, intermodal transportation, jobs, schools, health care, child-care, and public safety. It will also include an action component with specific strategies for carrying out the plan over five years. In conjunction with the City's Code Enforcement Department, a four-block area of Olneyville has been identified as needing immediate attention. Code Enforcement has designated an investigator to assess the properties and record the necessary violations as well as follow up with the properties. Through its partnership with DOJ, Providence is successfully engaging both the physical and human aspects of neighborhood revitalization in Olneyville. Contact: Melanie J. Wilson Nickerson Community Center 401-351-2241 Nicker 133@aol.com U.S. Department of Justice Office of Justice Programs Executive Office for Weed and Seed 202-616-1 152 www.ojp.usdoj.gov/eows ------- Revitalizing Southeastern Communities A Brownfields Toolkit National Park Service — Rehabilitating an Urban Park in East Palo Alto, CA The City of East Palo Alto, California, is a vibrant low-income community that is overcoming significant brownfields contamination and other challenges to revitalization in partnership with a number of federal agencies, including the Department of Interior's National Park Service. In the early 1990s, East Palo Alto had a per-capita murder rate higher than most major metropolitan cities and a serious drug trafficking trade. While the crime rate has subsided through the work of many federal-local partnerships, only one out of the City's four parks remained open in 2002, leaving a lack of positive recreation opportunities for East Palo Alto's youth. In 2001, Martin Luther King (MLK) Jr. Park was forced to close due to lack of funding for maintenance. However, with a $300,000 Urban Park and Recreation Recovery (UPARR) grant from the National Park Service in May 2002, MLK Jr. Park is being rehabilitated to safely serve community residents' recreational needs and to spark revitalization in broader areas of the community. The UPARR program provides matching grants for rehabilitation, innovation, and planning, as well as technical assistance to economically distressed local governments. These grants are critical to help communities provide urban recreation activities for underserved populations, particularly at-risk youth and minority, low- income, elderly and disabled neighborhood residents. MLK Jr. Park has traditionally served as the home of the East Palo Alto Little League. UPARR grant funds have been used to replace the old baseball field with a multipurpose field, upgrade the walking paths and landscaping in the park, and add lighting. The goal of East Palo Alto's redevelopment plan is to enhance the community and its livability. In pursuit of this goal, the rehabilitation of MLK Jr. Park through the City's UPARR grant has provided significant recreation activities and direct access to the San Francisco Bay wetlands for East Palo Alto's 30,000 residents. As of summer 2004, the MLK Jr. Park rehabilitation project is 98 percent complete. The types of recreational facilities rehabilitated through UPARR grants include playgrounds, neighborhood parks, tennis and basketball courts, recreation centers, swimming pools, ball fields, picnic areas, and exercise trails, often in areas impacted by deterioration and brownfields. In addition, UPARR grants allow localities to convert idle non-recreational facilities into recreation centers that better serve the surrounding communities. The UPARR program encourages systematic local planning and a commitment to the continuing operation and maintenance of recreational programs, sites, and facilities. ------- Contacts: City of East Palo Alto Department of Community Services 650-853-3139 www.ci.east-palo-alto.ca.us/community/index.html U.S. Department of Interior, National Park Service Urban Park Recreation and Recovery National Center for Recreation and Conservation 202-354-6900 www.nps.gov/uprr/ ------- National Park Service — Creating an Underwater Brownfields Experience in Charleston, SC On Charleston's waterfront, a 1.5 acre contaminated site that was formerly owned by the National Park Service has been redeveloped as the home for the 69,000 square foot South Carolina Aquarium. The aquarium site is within the 18 acre Calhoun Park Area that runs along the Cooper River. The property consisted primarily of mudflats that were filled in by the Navy to provide additional space to work on small boats during World Wars I and II, but then sat idle for nearly 50 years. Over that time, the site was impacted by uses on surrounding properties. A manufactured gas plant operated on an adjacent site, which from 1855 to 1910 also housed a coal gasification plant. Over the years a saw mill, chemical company, creosoting plant, paint manufacturer, fuel company, and retailer of coal, wood, and coke all operated near the site. The National Park Service obtained the site from the Department of Defense in 1987. In 1984, Mayor Joseph Riley announced plans for an $8 million, 30,000 square foot aquarium in downtown Charleston. However, it was determined that the proposed downtown location for the aquarium would have exacerbated an already congested traffic area and an alternative site was sought. After an extensive search, the brownfield site owned by the National Park Service was chosen for its idea! location near downtown and along the waterfront. To prepare the site for redevelopment, the City began excavation to improve the site's drainage. In 1991, the excavation of the site revealed significant creosote contamination. EPA investigated the site and designated it a Superfund Accelerated Cleanup Model (SACM) site, which meant that the site would be treated as if it were on the National Priorities List (NPL) of federal Superfund sites. As a result of this determination, the National Park Service was concerned with the liability issues associated with the property and reluctant to lease the property to the City. To overcome these barriers, the City worked with EPA, the South Carolina Department of Health and Environmental Control, the National Park Service, and other federal agencies to negotiate an effective plan for assessment, cleanup and redevelopment. As a result of those discussions, the Park Service agreed to give the City a 50-year lease on the property. In all, it took eight years to assess the site, two years to implement the cleanup plan, and four years to build the project. The aquarium finally opened in May of 2000, more than 16 years from the date it was originally proposed. The aquarium has been a tremendous asset to the community, employing a staff of I 10 and 450 volunteers. From May 2000 to May 2002, the aquarium had 1.3 million visitors and in its first seven months brought in $8.8 million. The redevelopment has also spurred brownfield revitalization at ------- neighboring sites along the river. However, the aquarium has many other benefits beyond its significant economic impact. It serves as an educational and environmental resource center with exhibits on the five major aquatic ecosystems in South Carolina. The aquarium has established an education program that allows elementary and secondary school students to attend the aquarium for free, provided they participate in programmed lessons prior to and after their visit. In 2002, the aquarium also received a Phoenix Award for community impact. According to Charleston Mayor Joseph P. Riley, "We now have an important state asset in the South Carolina Aquarium, a valuable environmental tool to educate our citizens about the importance of our regional environment, and another opportunity for waters edge access for our residents and visitors." Contacts: Geona Shaw Johnson City of Charleston 843-724-3766 johnsong@ci.Charleston.sc.us Karen Sprayberry South Carolina Department of Health and Environmental Control 803-896-4252 SPRAYBKJ@dhec.sc.gov ------- Revitalizing Southeastern Communities A Brownfields Toolkit U.S. Forest Service — Unique Ecological Area Budding in Chicago, IL The 20-square mile Calumet region on Chicago's southeast side is the focus of a new partnership, including the State of Illinois, the City of Chicago, and the U.S. Department of Agriculture's, Forest Service, among others, that is rehabilitating both the region's economy and ecology through innovative, smart growth projects. The Calumet area was once one of the largest wetland complexes in lower North America, teeming with native flora and fauna. However, due to its strategic location, the region was also home to 120 years of heavy industrial activity, the remnants of which include thousands of acres of contaminated brownfields in need of cleanup, interspersed with thousands of acres of open space that provide a critical habitat to over 700 plant species and 200 bird species. Through brownfields revitalization, wetlands and land preservation, urban forestry and phytoremediation, renewable energy, and low impact development, Chicago seeks to make Calumet a national model of ecological innovation. As stated by Mayor Richard Daley, the Calumet project recognizes that "good environmental management is good for business, and good industrial development is good for the environment." Launched in June 2000, the Calumet project targets 3,000 of the area's 6,000 acres for brownfields redevelopment with sustainable technologies and industry. This redevelopment includes the construction of a new Ford Motor Company manufacturing complex that will use grass roofs, streamside buffers, and other low impact development innovations to significantly reduce stormwater runoff into local Calumet waters like Indian Creek The Calumet region's sustainable brownfields redevelopment will be linked with natural ecosystem rehabilitation and preservation though the creation of a 4,800 acre Calumet Open Space Reserve. The U.S. Forest Service, Chicago Department of Environment, and Illinois Department of Natural Resources, along with a range of local, state, and federal partners, worked to establish a "Calumet Area Ecological Management Strategy" as the framework and guidance for land managers to clean up their respective parcels within the Open Space Reserve. This strategy is the result of extensive collaboration among government agencies, local museums, residents, and environmental groups. The partnership aims to revitalize the watershed holistically, through preserving critical habitat, improving the ecology, establishing public recreation corridors, and creating new ecosystems appropriate for the area. The ecological management strategy is complimented by a land acquisition and preservation strategy for the Calumet Open Space Reserve. In order to interpret and celebrate the uniquely linked natural and industrial history of the Calumet region for visitors, school children, and residents, construction of a new Calumet Environmental Center is planned within the Open Space Reserve. The U.S. Forest Service participates actively in the Federal Brownfields Partnership. The U.S. Forest Service's mission is to achieve quality land management under a sustainable multiple-use concept that meets diverse needs. Through its work on the Calumet Open Space Reserve, the U.S. Forest Service is building on its long-term involvement in natural resources management in the greater Chicago area. ------- The U.S. Forest Service's contributions on the Open Space Reserve are focused on the ecological restoration of the site, including a project to use tree planting and urban forestry to help remediate contaminated soils and water in the Calumet region. The U.S. Forest Service is also assisting Chicago and area industries to transform the degraded, channelized Indian Creek into a more natural, meandering stream that can support aquatic insects and fish. Contact: Chicago Department of Environment 312-774-7609 www.ci.chi.il.us/environment U.S. Department of Agriculture Forest Service 202-205-8333 www.fs.fed.us ------- Revitalizing Southeastern Communities A Brownfields Toolkit Federal Housing Finance Board — Financing a Mixed-Use Urban Village in Des Moines, IA In 1993, the Riverpoint West area of Des Moines was devastated by a major flood. Business losses in the area totaled approximately $120 million. However, a partnership between the City of Des Moines and the Federal Housing Finance Board (which oversees the Federal Home Loan Bank system), along with other federal and state agencies, the private sector, and developers, is enabling the revitalization of the 300-acre Riverpoint West area. Riverpoint West is located directly south of the Central Business District. It offers an exciting opportunity to transform an underutilized, environmentally-contaminated industrial tract of land into an vibrant urban village with residential and commercial uses, including office and retail development. The adjacent Central Business District will be strengthened though the integration of housing, commercial, retail, and recreational development in Riverpoint West that will attract potential employees. A minimum of 125 acres of currently idle property will be cleaned up and returned to productive use. Construction of approximately 750 townhouses and condominiums and 450,000 square feet of low-rise office and retail space is planned in Riverpoint West. An estimated 500 quality, livable wage jobs will be created to help reduce the area's 30 percent poverty rate. The synergy between the revitalization of Riverpoint West and the Central Business District is expected to increase Des Moines' tax base from $12 million to more than $140 million and help decrease urban sprawl. In addition, the landscaped open space in Riverpoint West will maximize use of the natural resource amenities at a nearby lake and park to create recreational opportunities for residents and visitors. A pedestrian bridge will be installed over the Raccoon River to link up with walking and biking trails. The redevelopment challenge has entailed determining the nature and extent of environmental contamination from past industrial uses of the Riverpoint West area, assessing the geotechnical constraints that may limit construction density, and obtaining nearly $20 million to fund land assemblage. In a first-of-its kind effort, the Federal Home Loan Bank of Des Moines, working in partnership with the Iowa Finance Authority, has proposed an innovative equity investment of $2 million, and up to $20 million in debt investment in the Riverpoint West project on a limited liability basis to facilitate site preparation prior to construction of the planned housing, commercial, and retail development. The Federal Housing Finance Board regulates the Federal Home Loan Bank system. In recent years, the FHFB changed its regulations to allow Federal Home Loan Banks to invest equity and debt resources in community revitalization projects, including brownfields revitalization projects. In addition, each of the 12 Federal Home Loan Banks, as required by law, annually sets aside at least ten percent of its net earnings for its Affordable Housing Program, which subsidizes the cost of housing for very low-income and low- or moderate-income owner-occupied and rental housing. In 2004, a combined total of $200 million was available for the Affordable Housing Programs. Through Community Investment Cash Advances and Letters of Credit, the Federal Home Loan Banks provide financing on favorable terms to ------- their financial institution members for use in housing and community development projects on brownfields, which the Federal Housing Financing Board has deemed a priority. Subsequently, developers negotiate terms with member banks, which may provide more favorable financing. Des Moines' partnership with its Federal Home Loan Bank and the Iowa Finance Authority is a pioneering effort to direct new funding resources to old brownfields problems. Contact: Des Moines Office of Economic Development 515-237-135 www.dmoed.org/sites/river_west.html Federal Housing Finance Board 202-408-2500 www.fhfb.gov/FHLB/FHLBPS_index.htm ------- Revitalizing Southeastern Communities A Brownfields Toolkit NOAA — Coasting to Brownfields Revitalization on the Waterfront in New Bedford, MA Many of our nation's coastal areas suffer from contamination left behind by abandoned industrial sites along ports and harbors. New Bedford, Massachusetts has partnered with federal and local agencies, including the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), to meet the brownfield redevelopment challenges shared by many coastal communities. A former home to numerous industries, the City of New Bedford has suffered from the contamination of its coast, including Superfund sites and 150 acres of brownfield sites; increased sprawl; and related high unemployment, poverty, and high school dropout rates that impede economic vitality. Moreover, harbor and wetland contamination forced vital lobster, fish and clam fisheries to close in the 1970s. To assist the New Bedford Brownfields Task Force in rehabilitating the coastal contamination and thereby revitalizing New Bedford's economy, a NOAA sent a brownfields coordinator to live and work in the City. The NOAA brownfields coordinator assisted with assessing and safely remediating coastal contamination; promoting the compatible and sustainable use of coastal areas, port and industrial zones, and recreation and tourism facilities; facilitating New Bedford's access to federal programs that fund economic redevelopment and worker training; planning and implementing environmental restoration; and using decision-making databases and mapping tools. The NOAA coordinator also served as the primary liaison between New Bedford and its federal partners under the City's designation as one of three federal "Portfields" Demonstration Pilots. The New Bedford Brownfields Task Force has inventoried and prioritized its brownfield sites. Some of the sites have already been rehabilitated and redeveloped. The City remediated and promoted redevelopment of a 72 acre brownfield site for a local company that now employs more than 400 people. The City also created an industrial subdivision on a 25 acre brownfield site that had been vacant for over 60 years. Three lots have been developed, and development is underway at three others. Collectively, brownfields redevelopment efforts in New Bedford have led to the creation and retention of over 1, 100 jobs and nearly $80 million in private investment at these sites. New Bedford plans to continue its successful efforts in brownfields redevelopment to improve public access to the waterfront and increase the quality of near-shore habitat. NOAA has been involved in New Bedford since the late 1980s, when it promoted remediation and restoration at the New Bedford Harbor Superfund site. NOAA views brownfield redevelopment as a unique opportunity to revitalize coastal communities using existing infrastructure and transportation, while preserving open space and protecting natural resources. In addition, NOAA is currently leading the federal interagency "Portfields Initiative" that promotes the redevelopment and reuse of brownfields in and around ports, harbors, and transportation hubs, with an emphasis on the development of environmentally sound ports. ------- Four NOAA offices currently provide assistance to coastal communities working on brownfields redevelopment. NOAA's Office of Response and Restoration protects and restores contaminated coastal resources and habitats, including brownfields, through assessment, evaluation, and implementation of cost-effective environmental remediation and redevelopment solutions. NOAA's Office of Ocean and Coastal Resource Management provides funding to coastal states for brownfields redevelopment in connection with their waterfront revitalization activities. NOAA's Office of Education and Sustainable Development provides funding to and sponsors workshops for coastal cities to assist such them in planning brownfields redevelopment. NOAA's Coastal Services Center provides coastal resource professionals with the tools to engage communities regarding land and water issues, including brownfields redevelopment. Contacts: Scott Alfonse City of New Bedford 508-979-1487 www.ci.new-bedford.ma.us/ Kenneth Walker National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration Office of Response and Restoration 301-713-3155 www.brownfields.noaa.gov/ ------- Revitalizing Southeastern Communities A Brownfields Toolkit Department of the Treasury — Federal New Market Tax Credits for Brownfield Redevelopment in Cleveland, OH The New Markets Tax Credit (NMTC) program, an initiative of the U.S. Department of Treasury's Community Development Financial Institutions Fund (CDFIF), is a federal tax initiative designed to infuse investment capital into low-income communities to support community development, including activities such as brownfield redevelopment. The NMTC program permits taxpayers to receive a credit against federal income taxes for making qualified equity investments in designated Community Development Entities (CDEs), Tax credits are allocated annually by CDFIF through a competitive application process. The CDEs awarded the tax credits will then sell the tax credits to taxable investors in exchange for stock or a capital interest in the CDEs. The size of the credit is equal to 39 percent of the investors' qualified equity investments in a qualified Community Development Entity and can be claimed over a seven year period. The investor receives five percent for each of the first three years and six percent for each of the next four years. A CDE can use the proceeds from selling new market tax credits to assist eligible businesses by providing loans and financial counseling, amongst other community development activities. Key Community Development New Markets LLC, a subsidiary of Key Community Development Corporation, in Cleveland, Ohio, is an example of a community development entity that is using its new market tax credit allocation to support brownfield redevelopment. Key Community Development New Markets LLC received $150 million through New Market Tax Credits in 2002. The organization is using a portion of the tax credit proceeds to support brownfield redevelopment activities in communities where KeyBank has a retail market presence. Key Community Development New Markets LLC estimates that it will target 70 percent of its activities to urban areas, 20 percent of its activities to rural communities, and 10 percent of its activities to suburban locales. The organization is demonstrating the ability of the New Markets program to bridge financing gaps; create new partnerships between investors, communities, businesses, and government; and generate community revitalization through brownfield redevelopment. In Cleveland, along the shores of Lake Erie, adjacent to the Edgewater Park Marina and State Park, the Eveready Battery Plant sat vacant for years. Environmental investigations found elevated concentrations of chemicals in the soil and ground water on the site. Eveready has taken voluntary action to plan a cleanup of the site, and has obtained a covenant not to sue from Ohio EPA. In 2003, Ohio based Marous Development became involved in an effort to revitalize and redevelop the site. Marous intends to build 330 residential units in a neighborhood style development to be called Battery Park. Marous is currently working with the Ohio EPA to finalize the plans. Marous is working with Key Bank Community Development on the New Market Tax Credit for Battery Park. Groundbreaking at the site occurred on September 26, 2005. ------- Contacts: Roz Ciulla Key Community Development New Markets, LLC 216-689-4472 Rosalyn_Ciulla@KeyBank.com U.S. Department of Treasury Community Development Financial Institutions Fund 202-622-8662 www.cdfifund.gov/ ------- Revitalizing Southeastern Communities A Brownfields Toolkit NIEHS — Creates JOBS in Historic Lowell, MA The National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences (NIEHS) is playing a significant role in the revitalization of Lowell, Massachusetts by helping to address the City's stagnant local economy and lack of developable land through job training related to brownfields redevelopment. As the nation's first planned industrial city, Lowell enjoyed a high level of economic prosperity until the exit of several manufacturing companies after World War I. The relocation trend left behind abandoned buildings and contaminated properties, as well as rapidly rising poverty, low job skills, and a high rate of unemployment in Lowell. In an effort to expand the capacity and abilities of its work force and simultaneously address the brownfield sites that dot its urban landscape, Lowell has partnered with the University of Massachusetts at Lowell (UMASS Lowell), the Laborers-Associated General Contractors Education, Training Fund (Laborers-AGC), and a local community based organization, Coalition for a Better Acre. A key component of the program was a partnership between UMASS-Lowell and Coalition for a Better Acre, servicing Lowell's most economically challenged neighborhood. The partnership received a NIEHS grant, administered by UMASS Lowell, that finances an annual three-month job training program called Environmental justice on Brownfields Sites (JOBS). The program is funded at $390,000 annually. Environmental JOBS offers participants two employment tracks: a construction/environmental remediation track, or an environmental technician track. The construction track prepares students for entry-level positions such as hazardous waste, lead and asbestos removal. The technician track provides students with the skill set to pursue entry-level positions in environmental sampling and monitoring at hazardous level waste sites. The program produced over 90 graduates by the end of 2002 and a 90 percent job placement rate. Focused on improving academic performance, and safety, health, environmental remediation, and construction skills, Environmental JOBS produced qualified graduates who are prepared to enter Lowell's workforce and contribute to reviving the City's economy through brownfields redevelopment. Contacts: Brian Connors City of Lowell-Division of Planning and Development 978-970-4276 bconnors@ci.lQwell.ma.us Sharon Beard National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences 919-541-1863 beard I @niehs.nih.gov ------- ------- |