I | Brownfields 2005 Cleanup Grant Fact Sheet r*> r* PRO1* Ouachita Parish Law Enforcement District, Monroe, LA 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. 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. Community Description The Ouachita Parish Law Enforcement District (OPLED) was selected to receive a brownfields cleanup grant. The OPLED provides law enforcement for the entire parish (population 147,898). Currently, it operates out of overcrowded space in the parish courthouse in downtown Monroe, a federally designated Enterprise Community. This overcrowding is causing major problems with the efficient delivery of law enforcement services. Nearly half of Monroe's 53,107 residents live in the cleanup target area. Ninety-four percent of them are minority. Unemployment and poverty levels in this community are 48 and 58 percent, respectively. The site chosen for the new OPLED headquarters is the abandoned E.A. Conway Hospital, located in the center of the most blighted and crime-ridden area of the parish. The property is contaminated with asbestos and has been extensively vandalized since it was abandoned in 1988. As a result, the contamination has spread throughout the complex, endangering the surrounding neighborhood. Cleanup and renovation of the old hospital and the presence of the OPLED will greatly improve the health, safety, and economic well-being of the area. Other government agencies are expected to move to the location as renovation proceeds. The project is expected to reduce crime, improve the local environment, provide new jobs, and stimulate additional economic development in the Cleanup Grant $200,000 for hazardous substances EPA has selected the Ouachita Parish Law Enforcement District for a brownfields cleanup grant. Grant funds will be used to remove asbestos and asbestos-contaminated materials and debris at the abandoned E.A. Conway Hospital in the City of Monroe. Testing indicates the presence of asbestos in various applications throughout the hospital complex. 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 6 Brownfields Team (214) 665-6780 EPA Region 6 Brownfields Web site (http://www.epa.gov/region6/bro wnfields ) Grant Recipient: Ouachita Parish Law Enforcement District,LA (318) 325-4313 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 Solid Waste and Emergency Response (5105T) EPA 560-F-05-060 May 2005 ------- area. United States c Environmental anri Fmpflpn™ EPA 560-F-05-060 Protection Agency Response (5105T) May 2005 Washington, DC 20450 Kesponse (si us ) ------- |