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Brownfields
2001 Assessment
Pilot
Fact Sheet
Freeport, 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: $200,000
$50,000 for Greenspace
Profile: The Pilot targets brownfields located in an old, mixed-use industrial area adjacent to Freeport's central business district, especially the Rawleigh Complex, which has been subject to other assessment and cleanup work.
Background
EPA has selected the City of Freeport for a Brownfields Assessment Pilot. The city also was selected to receive additional funding for assessments at brownfields properties to be used for greenspace purposes. Located in northwestern Illinois, Freeport (population 25,840) has been a major transportation hub since the 1800s, serving road, rail, and river traffic. For this Pilot, the city has targeted a section of the downtown that includes the Rawleigh Complex, an old, mixed- use industrial area. About 25 percent of the residents living in the target area are minorities and 58 percent are low-income residents.
After freestanding mercury was found at the Rawleigh Complex in 1999, the city worked with the Illinois EPA and U.S. EPA to conduct initial assessments. In 2000, approximately 500 tons of contaminated soil and 210 drums of liquid waste were removed. That action discovered the presence of other contamination to be addressed. However, a complete assessment has not yet been funded, and without it, the site will remain vacant, drain city resources, and impede neighborhood redevelopment. The city has made progress in securing funds for site cleanup under the Illinois Site Remediation Program when the Pilot assessment is complete.
Objectives
The main Pilot objective is to complete Phase I and Phase II environmental site assessments at the Rawleigh Complex. Pilot funds also will be allocated to pay for costs incurred by enrollment in the state's voluntary cleanup program, and to develop a community involvement program and materials for the Rawleigh Complex.
Activities
Activities planned as part of this Pilot include:
- Identifying, assessing, and characterizing environmental contamination on parcels within the targeted Pilot area, including the Rawleigh Complex;
- Forming a steering committee of community-based stakeholders to evaluate redevelopment alternatives for parcels within the Pilot area;
- Conducting outreach activities designed to inform the public about the Pilot and garnering input for the assessment and redevelopment plans; and
- Addressing environmental justice issues raised by contamination of properties in the Pilot area.
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: City of Freeport, IL
(815) 235-8207
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.