Technical Assistance Success Stories | EPA #560F23305 February 2023 Planning for Sustainable Brownfield Redevelopment SHERIDAN COUNTY CONSERVATION DISTRICT - SHERIDAN, WY - (EPA REGION 8) SITE STATISTICS • Community: Sheridan, WY • Local project lead: Sheridan County Conservation District (SCCD) • Former use: Acme power plant and industrial uses • Future use: Nature park with trails • Brownfields technical assistance: Market study, site design/revitalization plan, and funding and financing report PROJECT BACKGROUND Coal mining was a major industry in Sheridan County in the early 1900s. The Sheridan County Electric Company constructed the Acme Power Plant in 1910 to provide electricity to the city of Sheridan, the mining town of Acme, and other coal mines and towns in the surrounding area. Although underground coal mining activities around Acme shut down permanently in 1940, the plant continued to generate power until 1976. Between1977 and 2015, the site was used for metal salvage, battery recycling, and vehicle salvage. The SCCD purchased the site in 2017 with the objectives of preserving the site's historic significance, restoring public access, and cleaning up soil and groundwater contamination. PROJECT CHALLENGE Figure 1: Project Site, Facing Southwest The former Acme Power Plant is an important historical site in Sheridan County, but its remote location, significant environmental contamination, and limited access are barriers to an economically productive reuse. The SCCD requested technical assistance (TA) to identify market conditions that would support reuse, create a conceptual reuse site design, and identify sources of funding to complete remediation and redevelopment. HOW EPA HELPED In 2022, the U.S. EPAs Office of Brownfields and Land Revitalization (OBLR) provided TA to support the SCCD by: • Conducting a site visit to Sheridan, Wyoming and coordinating a stakeholder engagement meeting. • Generating a demographic profile and desktop analysis of the site, conducting research into the local real estate market, and researching the financial feasibility of two reuse options for the site. • Creating a conceptual brownfield site reuse plan based on input from the stakeholder meeting. • Researching potential sources of funding for remediation and redevelopment as a nature park with trails. COMMUNITY'S NEXT STEPS • Work with industry experts to complete a more in-depth assessment of solar and a Whitewater park/water trail. • Complete soil and groundwater cleanup, and asbestos remediation in the existing buildings. • Demolish existing buildings. • Consider design alternatives and apply for funding to finance a nature park and trails. • Begin conversations with other public and private entities to determine long-term site ownership. Questions? Please contact EPA Region 8: Barbara Benov or Greg Davis ------- |