United States
Environmental Protection

Plan for Brownfields Redevelopment Success

Economic Impact Analysis

Successful brownfields
revitalization doesn't
just happen. It's
planned for.

Approach brownfield
revitalization through
creative, inclusive,
and efficient planning
activities.

¦	Early on in the site
selection process,
consider the range
of realistic site reuse
options.

¦	Create a brownfields
revitalization plan
based on the
community's vision,
site and surrounding
area conditions such
as environmental,
economic, real estate
market, assets,
challenges and
vulnerabilities. These
factors will directly
influence how the
site is assessed and
remediated.

Planning activities that
focus on brownfield
revitalization are
eligible under an EPA
Brownfields Assessment
or Multipurpose Grant.

Our community needs to:

¦	Evaluate how our planned brownfields assessment, cleanup, and reuse activities
will affect the local and regional economy. How many new jobs and how much new
spending can we expect from the brownfields project(s)?

¦	Determine whether the economic impact of the planned reuse aligns with local and
regional economic development and workforce goals.

How an Economic Impact Analysis can help: An economic impact analysis will provide
a dollar-value estimate of economic activity anticipated from the planned cleanup and
reuse of the site It will also provide an estimate of the expected number of jobs created.
The analysis will consider the economic impacts tied to the site-specific brownfields
redevelopment as well as area-wide economic impacts.

influence on brownfields assessment, cleanup, and reuse: An economic impact
analysis is an indicator of whether a particular proposed brownfields reuse will achieve
the economic development and job creation goals expected by the community. Whether
a proposed use can achieve local economic goals will inform future land use decisions,
including site assessment and cleanup activities.

What is involved? The analysis requires high level estimates of expected site reuse
economic activity, in the form of construction costs, purchases anticipated, hiring
estimates, and operation costs. These estimates are fed into an economic model. The
economic model will project an estimate of dollars and jobs to be generated by the reuse.
The model also considers potential spillover effects in related industries. After completing
the analysis, the community can examine and discuss the results in the context of their
local economic development goals.

When to conduct? An economic impact analysis is most helpful once the community
identifies one or more proposed site reuse options. This is typically early to mid-term in
the reuse planning process. The analysis of proposed uses may require further studies to
identify the highest and best use of the property, evaluating the economic impacts against
community vision and redevelopment goals.

What does it typically cost? Costs range from $15,000 to $70,000 depending on the
scope, location, and availability of public data, and the cost of paid data and economic
models for the site and area.

Who can perform? Typically performed by an experienced economic analyst, planner,
redevelopment specialist, or a multi-disciplinary brownfields redevelopment team.

Office of Brownfields and Land Revitalization (5105T) | EPA 560-F-24-002 | April 2024

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