A Brownfields Toolkit

Revitalizing Southeastern Communities

Waterbury, CT is Adding Polish to the Brass City

The closing of the historic brass mill industrial complex in Waterbury, Connecticut in 1986 not only
marked the end of an era for the brass capital of the world, but also left behind a blighted,
economically depressed brownfield that was hurting the City's economy. However, the site has been
transformed into the Brass Mill Center, a 1.2 million square foot regional shopping mall that has helped
spur the revitalization of Waterbury.

For nearly 200 years, the brass mill site along the Mad River was one of the largest industrial facilities in
the Northeast and home to three major brass factories, including the Scovill Brass Works, the largest
brass manufacturer in the United States. This concentration of brass manufacturers earned Waterbury
the moniker of "Brass Capital of the World" and the "Brass City." However, as competition increased
following World War II, Waterbury's brass mills began to decline and by the mid-1980s the last of the
big three, Century Brass, closed its doors.

When the brass mills closed, an environmental assessment of the 90 acres of properties they left
behind revealed numerous contaminants, including petroleum, PCBs, solvents, and heavy metals and
buildings in need of demolition. After several unsuccessful attempts at industrial reuse, the City of
Waterbury developed a comprehensive plan for cleaning up the site and preparing it for
redevelopment, in partnership with the Naugatuck Valley Development Corporation, Brass Center
Limited, Connecticut's departments of Economic and Community Development and Environmental
Protection, the U.S. Department of Defense, and the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency.

As cleanup of the site moved forward, the site's location along a major interstate and the eastern
periphery of the City's central business district attracted the attention of a major national shopping
center developer (the Homart Development Company, now known as General Growth Properties)
who proposed to build a new retail mall and center, the Brass Mill Center and Commons.

Completed in September 1997, the project has generated 1600 construction jobs and well over 400
new retail jobs, increased the City's tax revenues, and helped spur further redevelopment in
downtown Waterbury. The original development created four anchor stores and approximately 150
individual retail stores. In addition, a river walkway now connects the mall and commons to the
downtown and a nearby park, and the interactive Timexpo museum has opened in the two former
administrative office buildings of the restored mill complex. In all, this $170 million project has helped
reestablish Waterbury as a regional retail destination, and will help diversify its economic base and
promote a more sustainable economic future for the City.

Contact:

Naugatuck Valley Development Corporation
203-756-2719

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Revitalizing Southeastern Communities

A Brownfields Toolkit

Retail Success at a Former Landfill in Elizabeth, NJ

The Elizabeth Metro Center ranks as one of New Jersey's largest brownfield redevelopment projects.
Originally the site of an industrial and municipal landfill, this 166-acre property was abandoned in 1972
and lay dormant for two decades leaching harmful amounts of PCBs, paint sludge, and lead into the soil
and nearby Newark Bay and Arthur Kill River. Thanks to strong partnerships between public and
private stakeholders, this property is now home to a 1.5 million square foot outlet shopping mall, 20
screen Loews theater, innovative job training facility, and two Marriott Hotels. The project has been a
catalyst for revitalizing the City of Elizabeth. It generates $2.5 million in annual revenues and has
created more than 5,500 permanent jobs and 1,700 construction jobs. In 2001, the Elizabeth Metro
Center received a prestigious Phoenix Award for its innovative approach to brownfields
redevelopment.

As a result of the contamination and the property's meager tax revenues, the Elizabeth City Council
declared the landfill site "blighted" in 1987. Despite this designation, the property remained attractive
to real estate developers due to its close proximity to Newark Airport and New York City. In 1992,
the OENJ Corporation, a private development group, acquired the Elizabeth landfill site and began
plans to clean up and redevelop the property. In addition to the contamination, OENJ faced major
obstacles to development, including the lack of adequate infrastructure to support a large scale
commercial project. Because the site was originally a landfill, there were no sewers, roads or utilities,
and a 60-foot wide, 4,800 foot long stormwater ditch bisected the property. In addition, OENJ faced
permitting issues associated with filling a series of degraded wetlands in the ditch.

To address these development obstacles, OENJ worked closely with local, state, and federal
government agencies, non-profit organizations, and community groups. OENJ established task forces to
address complex permitting and infrastructure requirements. Meeting once a month, these groups
were able to simultaneously submit federal, state, and local permit applications, which enabled OENJ to
receive all necessary permits in one year, instead of the usual three. The task forces also secured
funding to improve local roads and construct a new interchange, which offers direct access to the site
from the New Jersey Turnpike. Among those involved in the task forces were the Regional Plan
Association (RPA), Union County Economic Development Corporation, City of Elizabeth Department
of Transportation, and the New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection (DEP).

With funding and permits secured, OENJ moved forward with its redevelopment plans. To prevent
pollutants from leaching out of the landfill, OENJ capped the area with recycled materials from around
the region, including construction and demolition debris, ash, and crushed glass. The development
group also incorporated approximately 100 million cubic yards of contaminated dredged material from
the Newark Bay that was treated using cement and other pozzolanic reagents. This reuse provided the
Port Authority of New York and New Jersey with a location for material that was deemed unsuitable
for ocean disposal.

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In 1998, OENJ sold 125 acres of the brownfield to Glichmer Realty Trust, a nationally-renowned retail
center developer. Approximately one year later, in October 1999, a 1.5 million-square-foot outlet mall
opened, which has brought new life to the former industrial area. The Jersey Gardens Mall is home to
more than 200 stores and restaurants, making it New Jersey's largest outlet shopping center. Over 15
million people have visited the complex, generating more than $2.5 million in revenue for the City of
Elizabeth. The project has increased property tax revenues by more than $3 million a year. More than
$118 million has been invested in transportation and sewage infrastructure and approximately $20
million has been spent on remediation of the site. In exchange for filling the degraded wetlands, OENJ
created 10 acres of high-quality wetlands along the Newark Bay, providing tidal habitat for the
endangered Least Tern.

OENJ Corporation retained 40 acres of the Elizabeth brownfield site, including 20 acres of upland
waterfront property that overlook the New York City skyline and Statue of Liberty. The development
group is currently developing a 700,000 square feet office park for retail and office use. In addition, the
group plans to implement light rail access to Newark International Airport and a ferry service to
Manhattan.

Contact:

Office of the Mayor
City of Elizabeth, NJ
908-820-4029

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St. Louis, MO is a Gateway to Brownfields Revitalization

The St. Louis Commerce Center at the Dr. Martin Luther King Business Park, now home to major
businesses including Gateway CDI, Killark Electrical Products, Swank Motion Pictures and McLeod USA
Telecommunications, was the City of St. Louis' first federal brownfields pilot project. This commercial
success sits on what used to be sixteen blocks of the North Side's closed foundries, plating facilities,
chemical companies, dry cleaners, gasoline stations and salvage yards. Today, the properties have been
transformed into a thriving center of investment and job growth.

Environmental concerns were at the heart of this redevelopment project, and the potential
contamination associated with the land's historic use necessitated numerous city-funded environmental
assessments. Starting in 1993, the St. Louis Development Corporation (SLDC), was able to secure
$200,000 in EPA funds for site investigation. To head off the anticipated costs linked to UST-related
releases, the SLDC registered all former gas stations in the State of Missouri's Petroleum Storage Tank
Insurance Fund. Other remediation and demolition expenses were covered by funds escrowed from
the proceeds of the sites' sales.

Balke Brown Associates, a developer of commercial and office/industrial buildings, purchased 20 acres.
The asbestos, lead and corroding underground storage tanks discovered at the site presented
problems for remediation. Balke Brown President Steve Brown, in a March 2003 issue of St. Louis
Commerce Magazine, remarked that "[t]he site was an environmentally contaminated combat
zone...[b]urned-out buildings with environmental issues, six blocks crisscrossed with utilities and old
alleys, and we had to pay for remediation and utility relocation. It was a mess!" Fortunately, the $2.5
million preparation cost was largely relieved by a state Department of Economic Development
brownfields remediation tax credit of about $1 million, and a city offer of a comparable amount
through purchase price reductions. This was possible after the site was declared eligible for the state's
brownfield incentives program and entered into the Missouri Department of Natural Resources'
Voluntary Cleanup Program. Balke Brown Associates obtained commercial insurance policies to cap
expenses associated with site contamination.

The first completed building, quickly occupied by Gateway CDI, brought an initial 75 jobs and new
confidence to the area's business community. Other companies followed suit, including a medical
instrument supplier. Over 300 more jobs and $10 million in future investment was projected for the
three building, $12 million Commerce Center, that encompasses 480,000 square feet of prime
warehouse and light manufacturing space. The project had a major positive impact on the surrounding
area. Redevelopment of the area sparked considerable investment and growth on adjacent properties,
including commitments to the redevelopment of twelve more of the original sixteen city blocks,
representing hundreds of jobs and millions of dollars in investment.

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Once an environmental liability, the Martin Luther King Business Park area has been successfully
converted into a model economic center. The City's formalized Brownfields Program played a central
role in these successful revitalization projects, realizing unique opportunities to redevelop urban
properties that were once considered unmarketable due to their real or perceived contamination. By
targeting specific areas of the City and promoting the use of federal, state and local resources to assist
in redevelopment, St. Louis has presented itself as a one-stop resource for developers. The team of
technical and economic professionals at SLDC offered personalized services throughout the process,
and administered a range of real estate tax abatement, enterprise zone tax incentive, business facility
tax credit, and tax increment financing programs. Most properties are eligible for one or more of these
incentive programs.

Contact:

Eric Klipsch

St. Louis Development Corporation

314-622-3400

stlouis.missouri.org/sldc/

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A Brownfields Toolkit

Revitalizing Southeastern Communities

Community Input is Key to Revitalization of Johnson Street
Quarry in Minneapolis, MN

Community participation was critical to the redevelopment of the former Johnson Street Quarry in
Minneapolis, Minnesota into a neighborhood shopping center. By the mid-1990s, the once-active
Johnson Street Quarry had become a blighted property, pulling down the entire neighborhood. The
community wanted it cleaned up and replaced with a supermarket — part of the community plan and
vision — and something that the neighborhood really needed.

A developer worked with the City to establish a redevelopment plan for the site that included a
supermarket as an anchor, plus additional large commercial space and room for small service stores.
The developer offered to pay twice the current market value for the site if the City acquired the
quarry site, cleaned it, took it through the Minnesota Voluntary Cleanup Program, and delivered it
shovel ready. Although, this would cost the City significantly more than the purchase price, it decided
that the elimination of blight, cleanup of festering contamination in a largely residential area, sales and
property tax gains, and 1,700 full time jobs were worth the risk. The City issued tax increment bonds
to pay for the cleanup, because of these potential gains.

However, many local residents were concerned that this proposal was too big and would negatively
impact their community. A neighborhood task force met monthly in a televised public forum to discuss
project plans with the City and developers, to track progress, and address community concerns. Given
the complexity of this deal, the televised task force meetings turned out to have a number of benefits.
Those not able to attend the meeting could still follow the process on TV or get videotapes afterward.
This gave the developer more comfort against surprises as the project unfolded. It also allowed City
officials to document the process and show latecomers what issues had already been addressed.

This project and community involvement process worked well.

Neighborhood ideas for access to the shopping center and site
configuration were incorporated into the design. The developer
realized an unanticipated benefit from the community's comfort
with the process when local residents went to the zoning board
on his behalf to support a set-back variance that allowed more
parking on site. In this instance, neighbors allowed the buildings to
be placed closer to the lot line, in exchange for adding attractive
brick facing on the building. This added a whole row of parking
spaces.

The 420,000 square foot community shopping center opened in 1999. The supermarket, Rainbow
Foods, reports that their Quarry store does more sales volume than any in their system of stores.
Each of the other stores is at or near the top of all their Minnesota stores, and the Target store is one

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of the chain's highest volume stores nationally. The developer attributes the success of the project to
the community participation in place from the outset.

The Quarry Retail Center has also spurred redevelopment in the surrounding area, creating more than
2,000 new jobs — nearly 20 percent more than projected. It has increased property and sales taxes by
more than $3 million a year, also higher than projected, allowing Minneapolis to recoup its TIF
investment in less than 10 years. Finally, in terms of its impact on the declining adjacent neighborhood,
the City reports that today there are no vacant apartments, and homes sell within days of listing. An
entire block of new homes was developed adjacent to the site in 2001, and it sold out immediately.

The success of the Johnson Street Quarry project demonstrates that: (I) community participation can
enhance acceptance and marketability; and (2) strong public private partnership are keys to success in
brownfields revitalization.

Contact:

Mike Christensen

Minneapolis Community Planning and Economic Development
612-673-5122

mike.christensen@ci.minneapolis.mn.us

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