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EPA AWARDS GARDENA, WEST HOLLYWOOD $350,000 FOR BROWNFIELDS REDEVELOPMENT

Release Date: 5/20/2002
Contact Information: Leo Kay, Press Office, 415/947-4306

     SAN FRANCISCO   The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency awarded the cities of Gardena and West Hollywood, Calif. each a $150,000 grant today that will allow local officials to clean up and revitalize underused, abandoned "brownfields."

     In addition, West Hollywood was awarded an additional $50,000 to assess and plan its expansion of green space.  West Hollywoood officials will use its funding to continue work on revitalizing the city's East Side.  The EPA gave the city an initial brownfields grant in 1998.

     Allyne Winderman, Director of West Hollywood's Rent Stabilization and Housing Department said, "This is great news for the City of West Hollywood.  The EPA funds will help us to improve the quality of life for our community.  This is key to helping in identifying options for greenspace, residential and commercial development."

     In Gardena, the city will conduct more detailed site assessments and develop cleanup plans for the Discount Price Land and Gardena Sump sites two projects it had started to address with help from an initial $200,000 EPA brownfields grant awarded in 2000. Gardena will also use the new funding to conduct site assessments at up to seven additional properties.  

     "The original grant was the first step in our revitalization.  This presents us with continued opportunity to work with EPA and put some sites in line for revitalixzation.  Without this assistance it wouldn't be possible," said Gardena City Manager Mitchell G. Lansdell

     "This funding will allow local officials to continue to assess blighted properties in two Southern California communities in need of land to redevelop," said EPA Regional Administrator Wayne Nastri.  "We hope this funding helps boost redevelopment in areas that have been stymied by real or perceived contamination."

     The EPA announced 38 new grants nationwide today with funding totalling $7.95 million that fund the assessment of brownfields properties.  The assessment pilots empower states, cities, towns, counties and tribes to work together to assess and encourage cleanup of brownfields properties in order to promote their sustainable reuse. In addition to the Gardena and West Hollywood grants, 40 communities received supplemental funding totaling $6.65 million to continue or expand their existing brownfields program.

     Since its inception, the EPA=s Brownfields Program has contributed over $280 million in pilots and grants to spur assessment, cleanup and redevelopment at sites throughout the country.  To date, every federal dollar spent on Brownfields has leveraged over twice that amount in private investment.  The EPA=s Brownfields program has leveraged over $4 billion in public and private investments that have turned abandoned industrial properties into thriving economic centers, useful recreational areas and beneficial open spaces.  

     "Reclaiming America=s brownfields properties is an effective way to help revitalize and reinvigorate our nation=s blighted neighborhoods while at the same time preventing urban sprawl," said EPA Administrator Christie Whitman.  "Brownfields reclamation is one of the great environmental success stories of the past decade."

     Whitman continued. "But the story is hardly over. EPA and its partners in every state of the union are ready to write the next chapter in the brownfields story. Given the commitment of this Administration, I can guarantee you that story will have a very happy ending."

     Earlier this year, President Bush signed bipartisan legislation that will encourage the cleanup and redevelopment of old industrial properties   cleaning up our environment, creating jobs and protecting small businesses from frivolous lawsuits.  In addition, the President's FY 03 budget request doubled the funds available through the EPA in FY 02 -- from $98 million to $200 million -- to help states and communities around the country clean up and revitalize brownfields sites.
                                                       
     For further information about the EPA=s Brownfields program go to
https://www.epa.gov/brownfields.