Medical Manufacturing turned Oceanside Community Hub

Developing a Site Design for the former PRIDCO site in Culebra, Puerto Rico

Project Summary

Community: Culebra, Puerto Rico

Technical Assistance: Site Design

Former Use: Medical Manufacturer

Future Use: Community Center Hub With Housing

The island-municipality of Culebra is a beautiful tourist
destination for Puerto Ricans and foreign tourists. In
contrast, the large former Puerto Rico Industrial
Development Company (PRIDCO) facility, which
operated as a laboratory and medical equipment
manufacturer, is an abandoned and blighted site
adjacent to downtown. However, the facility presents a
unique opportunity to address challenges to the
community such as the lack of affordable housing for
teachers, parking close to downtown, and a centralized
emergency resource. The Municipality of Culebra and
Mujeres de Islas, Inc., a local nonprofit, are committed
to gain ownership and redevelop the PRIDCO space
into a productive asset for the benefit of Culebra for
years to come.

The Community's Challenge

The building is abandoned and deteriorating, and many
structures need immediate repair and replacement.
Before moving forward, the Municipality of Culebra and
Mujeres de Islas needed a conceptual plan evaluating
the potential and realistic uses of the PRIDCO facility to
bolster their proposition to acquire the property.

EPA's Land Revitalization Technical Assistance
In 2021 and 2022, the U.S. Environmental Protection
Agency (EPA) Land Revitalization Program provided
contractor technical assistance to develop the

schematic concept plan of the future community hub.
The large space was programmed to fit all of Culebra's
priorities, including affordable housing for teachers or
other residents, community hub/shelter space, food
storage space, kitchen space, laundry facilities, lockers
and restrooms for tourists, a makerspace workshop,
research education lab, transitional housing, and a new
parking lot. The plan also detailed net-zero energy
strategies by utilizing rooftop solar panels and battery
storage, as well as other sustainable measures like
composting and organic farming using grey water.

With the schematics of the future hub, the Municipality
and Mujeres de Islas can present a clear vision to
PRIDCO and advocate for site ownership.
Redevelopment of the facility can transform this space
into a center for community placemaking as well as
resilience and economic advancement.

Figure 1: PRIDCO site conceptual reuse plan

For more information, contact Schenine Mitchell, EPA
Region 2 Brownfields Program, at

Mitchell.Schenine@epa.qov.

GftEYWATERdSTERM

United States
Environmental Protection
M % Agency

Office of Brownfields and Land Revitalization
560-F-22-027

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