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Brownfields
1999 Assessment
Pilot
Fact Sheet
Lacon, IL
EPA Brownfields Initiative
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.
Pilot Snapshot
Date of Announcement: Mar 1999
Amount: $200,000
Profile: The Pilot targets the 17-acre former Lacon Woolen Mill site, located on the banks of the Illinois River.
Background
EPA has selected the City of Lacon for a Brownfields Pilot. Lacon (population 1,986) is a small rural community located in the Illinois River Valley, which relied heavily on the Lacon Woolen Mill for employment. When the mill closed in the late 1960s after 100 years of operation, the city lost a key business and residents lost their main employer. Lacon currently has an unemployment rate of 7 percent, and 55 percent of city residents are low- to moderate-income. The mill site is located in the city's South Ward, one of the poorest areas of Lacon.
The city obtained control of the 17-acre mill site in 1996, and discovered that the former mill's buildings, groundwater, soil, and floodplain were filled with a variety of contaminants, including asbestos, pesticides, and volatile organic compounds (VOCs). The site is approximately 1,000 feet from the city's drinking water supply wells. Some preliminary investigation and cleanup has been performed, but a thorough assessment is necessary before the city can proceed with the rest of its cleanup and redevelopment activities. The mill site includes a four-acre parcel of former industrial property, two acres of Illinois River bank and floodplain, and eleven acres of Illinois River Bay.
Objectives
The City of Lacon plans to clean up the mill site and redevelop it to take advantage of the site's location on the banks of the Illinois River. Planned uses include a green area, public park, residential areas, retail, and restaurants. Since the site is adjacent to a public river access point, which includes small shops and restaurants, redevelopment would expand the existing riverfront and encourage tourism and recreational use. The Pilot will contribute to this objective by performing a comprehensive environmental investigation and assisting the city in developing cleanup plans.
Activities
Activities planned as part of this Pilot include:
- Performing environmental assessments at the Lacon Woolen Mill site, including soil and groundwater analysis and assessment of the sediments and past filling of the river bank and bay; and
- Developing cleanup objectives and plans.
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 5 Brownfields Team
(312) 886-7576
EPA Region 5 Brownfields Web site
(http://www.epa.gov/R5Brownfields)
Grant Recipient: Lacon, IL, City of
(309) 246-3185
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.
Brownfields
1999
Supplemental
Assessment
Pilot
Fact Sheet
City of Lacon, IL
EPA Brownfields Initiative
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.
Pilot Snapshot
Date of Announcement: Apr 2001
Amount: $150,000
Profile: City of Lacon, IL. The Pilot plans to assess an area of the Illinois River, offshore of the Lacon Woolen Mill site for sediment contamination in order to facilitate site cleanup and eventual redevelopment of the riverfront area.
Background
EPA has selected the City of Lacon to receive supplemental assistance for its Brownfields Assessment Demonstration Pilot. Lacon (population approximately 2,000) is a rural community located in the Illinois River Valley, which relied heavily on the Lacon Woolen Mill for employment. When the mill closed in the late 1960s after 100 years of operation, the city lost a key business and residents lost their main employer. Lacon currently has an unemployment rate of 7 percent, and 55 percent of city residents are low- to moderate-income. The mill site is located in the city's South Ward, one of the poorest areas of Lacon.
The city obtained control of the 17-acre mill site in 1996, and discovered that the former mill's buildings, groundwater, soil, and floodplain were filled with a variety of contaminants, including asbestos, pesticides, and volatile organic compounds (VOCs). The site is approximately 1,000 feet from the city's drinking water supply wells. Some preliminary investigations and cleanup were performed, and a Phase II environmental assessment and cleanup action plan were funded by the initial EPA Brownfields Assessment Demonstration Pilot. However, during mill operations, outfall pipes deposited liquid waste into the Illinois River, so before the city can proceed with the rest of its redevelopment activities, a portion of the river offshore of the mill must be sampled for contamination.
Objectives
The City of Lacon plans to use supplemental assistance funds to help revitalize the city's riverfront in order to boost the local economy through more tourism, jobs, and an increased tax base. Prior to riverfront redevelopment however, the Pilot plans to sample sediment in the river offshore of the Lacon Woolen Mill site and pursue a No Further Remediation Letter for the area. When this work is completed, the city hopes to extend the marina located north of the Lacon Woolen Mill site, providing boat access to a new greenspace area for bird watching, walking trails, and fishing, as well as to new and existing restaurants, retail stores, and the American Legion Hall.
The Pilot plans to:
- Conduct sediment sampling in the river offshore of the Lacon Woolen Mill site including an evaluation of the depth and breadth of sediment contamination;
- Establish cleanup objectives for groundwater and the river;
- Develop a cleanup action plan for any offshore contamination discovered; and
- Conduct community outreach activities to educate residents on project activities.
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 5 Brownfields Team
(312) 886-7576
EPA Region 5 Brownfields Web site
(http://www.epa.gov/R5Brownfields)
Grant Recipient: Lacon, IL, City of
(309) 246-6111
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.