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EPA Gives $500,000 Brownfields Grant to Lewiston, Maine

Release Date: 05/18/2000
Contact Information: Peyton Fleming, EPA Press Office (617-918-1008)

BOSTON - The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency today announced that Lewiston, Maine, has been chosen to receive $500,000 of Brownfields assistance to set up a revolving loan fund to help pay for site cleanups in the city.

Lewiston, a former manufacturing center that has minimal open space, will use the funds to issue low-interest cleanup loans for redevelopment of former mills. It will initially focus on loans for the Bates Mill, a five-acre complex with a million square feet, and then expand to other sites throughout the city, including Libbey Mill.

Lewiston is among 15 grant recipients in New England and 102 chosen nationally to receive a total of $35 million in Brownfields grants. The funds are being used across the country for site assessments, revolving loan cleanup programs and Brownfields job training programs.

"This $500,000 grant will help jump start Lewiston's efforts to clean up its abandoned and contaminated sites so they can be put back to productive reuse," said Mindy S. Lubber, regional administrator of EPA's New England Office. "As a result, residents of Lewiston can look forward to a cleaner environment, new jobs and more tax revenues for the community."

"I applaud the welcome support of the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency for cleanup of the brownfields site at the Bates Mill facility," said U.S. Sen. Olympia J. Snowe, who has worked with Lewiston area officials for nearly a decade on the Bates Mill Project. "Revitalization of Bates Mil is a top priority for Lewiston-Auburn and this major, $500,000, in funding will provide city officials with a revolving loan fund to keep cleanup and revitalization work on track.

"This revolving loan from EPA is a vital component to the redevelopment of this site for the city of Lewiston, which can now proceed towards realizing its ambitious and commendable vision for reclaiming this area," said Sen. Susan M. Collins.

"This substantial grant from the Environmental Protection Agency will play an important role int he continued revitalization of the Bates Mill Complex," said U.S. Rep. John Baldacci. "By helping communities like Lewiston to clean up and redevelop property for commercial use, the EPA's Brownfields initiative is making a difference. It represents a vital partnership between federal and local governments to enhance economic development and improve the quality of life in towns and cities across America."

A total of $5.4 million in Brownfield grants were awarded today to 15 New England recipients. Other grants went to New Bedford, Brockton, North Adams and Gloucester in Massachusetts; Providence and the State of Rhode Island; Westbrook in Maine; the Windham Regional Commission in Vermont; and New London, Berlin, Danbury, Naugatuck Valley and Middlesex Community College in Connecticut