News

Speaking at the Oklahoma Brownfields Conference, Senate Environment and Public Works Committee staff member Matt Hite was quoted as saying, “Behind the scenes, Republican staff are working with Democratic staff to find common ground for a Brownfields Reauthorization bill.” Senator Lautenberg (D-NJ) and Senator Inhofe (R-OK) were both quoted as supporting renewal of the brownfields program at an Environment and Public Works Committee hearing last October. Senator Inhofe is the Ranking Member of the Environment and Public Works Committe, Senator Lautenberg is Chair of the EPW’s Superfund, Toxics, and Environmental Health Subcommittee.

The House of Representatives’ Appropriations Subcommittee on Interior, Environment, and Related Agencies has proposed cutting the EPA Brownfields Site Assessment and Cleanup Program by $35 million, including a $2 million cut to the Assistance to the States program. The National Brownfields Coalition urges communities and businesses to contact members of the House and Senate Appropriations Committees and let them know how these critically important seed funds are making a difference in your communities. The Coalition’s successful FY 12 campaign is summarized here.

To support the Brownfields Coalition’s advocacy efforts, please consider joining the Brownfields Leadership Circle.

Miller’s Court, created 40 below market rate loft-style apartments for teachers new to Baltimore (many from Teach for America) and 35,000 square feet of office space for the non-profit organizations that serve Baltimore’s education, health and human service needs.

The recently completed second project, Union Mill, includes 30,000 sq ft of office space for Maryland non-profits, as well as 56 one and two-bedroom apartments. Part of the appeal to non-profits is the availability of joint conference/training rooms, technology centers (phones, faxes, and technology networks), and storage areas. Union Mill advertises $400 – $600 discounts for teachers. Seawall is able to grant those discounts because of the successful deployment of incentives, including New Markets Tax Credits, historic tax credits, and brownfields incentives.

Thibault Manekin, a Partner at Seawall, received a White House honor as a “Champion of Change” for his involvement in these social purpose redevelopment projects.

Click here to read more about the Union Mill project.

Philadelphia cleans up storm water with innovative green infrastructure program

Green City Clean Waters program is a 25-year, $2 billion plan to manage Philadelphia’s stormwater largely through green infrastructure, rather than simply digging new tunnels and storage tanks to hold runoff. The program has won accolades from the Natural Resources Defense Council; was recently described in glowing terms by National Geographic; and gained a new $200,000 commitment from EPA. NRDC describes it this way: “Philadelphia is the first city in the nation formally committed to using green infrastructure as the primary means to satisfy its combined sewer overflow obligations.” Shawn M. Garvin, EPA Regional Administrator, commented, “We spent a lot of time trying to clean water after it’s polluted,” says Garvin. “Now we’re focusing on how to keep water from coming into contact with pollution in the first place.”

Florida brownfields incentives: success draws scrutiny

Brownfield Redevelopment Bonus Refund (PDF) that offers up to $2,500 in tax credits for each job created on a brownfield. Localities have designated almost 16,000 acres of brownfields areas that are potentially eligible for the incentives, and job and investment numbers are impressively large (25,000 jobs and $4 billion in investment). In Brevard County the brownfields designations have become a centerpiece of the County’s economic development strategy. However, with success comes scrutiny:

• A recent in-depth news analysis questioned why companies locating in designated brownfields areas were getting tax breaks but cleanups were not always required;
• In Cocao, “Some owners say no to brownfields land labeling,” citing possible impacts on property values;
• Walmart, in a bid to build a Sam’s Club in St. Petersburg, ran into contamination issues, but the resulting tax credit was questioned in the media. The City, nevertheless, approved the credits.

Quick Hits:

• LOCUS’s Chris Leinberger – “Walk this Way: The Economic Promise of Walkable Places in Metropolitan Washington, D.C.”
• Next American City – “The Hidden Tax on Exurban Living.”
• The Center for Community Progress has launched a major new web-based tool – The Building American Cities Toolkit. The toolkit contains practical strategies to transform blighted property to productive reuse.
• A 66-acre Meadowlands garbage dump in New Jersey is slated to become a 3-megawatt solar farm.
• The mayor of Canton, IL maintains FOIA requests being used to avoid cleanup responsibilities.
• Clean Ohio shifts from grants to loans, brings Middletown projects to halt.
• Fort Wayne, IN offers cash incentives to try and breathe new life into brownfield sites.
• New NALGEP report available: “Next Generation Broadband, Cornerstone Infrastructure for 21st-Century Brownfields Redevelopment”

Conferences and Webcasts:

• Land Bank Conference
  October 14-16, 2012 – Kalamazoo, MI
• New Partners for Smart Growth
  February 7-9, 2013 – Kansas City, MO
  Submit a session proposal
• Brownfields 2013
  May 15-17, 2013 – Atlanta, GA
  Submit a session proposal

Newsletter prepared by Evans Paull, Executive Director, National Brownfields Coalition, 202-329-4282 or [email protected].

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