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TURNING STUMBLING BLOCKS INTO BUILDING BLOCKS

Release Date: 03/20/1998
Contact Information: Leo Kay, Press Office, (617) 918-4154

The industrial revolution that brought jobs and people en masse to New England in the late 19th century is long since gone, having left in its wake abandoned property scattered through our cities and towns. Once teeming mills and factories are now too often eyesores, often relegated to a "redevelopment limbo" in which the property is perceived as being too contaminated to turn over and too much of a problem to tear down.

Last week's designation of Lowell as a Brownfields Showcase Community comes as great news for the birthplace of the industrial revolution, its residents and the rest of us who treasure the area as a crucial piece of American history. The original Brownfields Pilot Program launched three years ago allowed municipalities to receive federal assistance in addressing abandoned or under used industrial and commercial properties, where expansion or redevelopment is complicated by real or perceived contamination. The showcase community designation takes the program one step further by bringing more agencies and resources into the mix. We have teamed up with 15 other federal agencies - Housing and Urban Development, Department of Commerce and the Small Business Administration among them - to address the Brownfields issue using a holistic approach. Where our hands might have been tied in the past in trying to find local residents qualified to handle hazardous work remediation, we now have the Department of Labor on our side to provide job training funds and programs. Where we might have lacked the funding under a traditional Brownfields grant, we now will be able to tap into the Department of Justice's "weed and seed" program, which turns abandoned vacant lots into safe places for our children to play. The collective knowledge and resources of such a broad-based government coalition will undoubtedly translate into a richer, more inclusive Brownfields program.

The fact that Lowell was one of only 16 communities selected out of 238 stands as testimony to the city's application and the work that it had done addressing derelict properties up until now. Lowell was redeveloping Brownfields before the concept even had a name. The city had achieved great success in redeveloping old mills, ash dumps and other disposal sites into projects that continue to produce jobs, increase the city's tax base and attract tourists. Using a $200,000 Brownfields grant we provided to Lowell last year, the city was able to start addressing contamination at the site of the Tsongas Arena. But $200,000 will only buy so much in the world of contaminated property restoration and redevelopment, so Lowell officials took the grant for what it was, seed money, and continued to look for more -- more investors, more partners and more resources. Now, one year and millions of leveraged dollars later, Lowell can begin to address, and ultimately redevelop, properties such as Lawrence Mills and the Gilmore Trust building. Where the grant was a good start, the showcase designation should carry the revitalization of the city's industrial corridor down the home stretch.

Lowell could not have a more willing partner than EPA-New England. We have embraced and spearheaded the national Brownfields movement since it was first announced by Administrator Browner just three years ago. Since then, towns and municipalities from Limestone, Maine to Bridgeport, Conn. have received 21 Brownfields grants, valued at more than $3.5 million. In fact, New England has received more Brownfields grants than any other region the country. More than handing out money, however, we have initiated a number of measures to remove many of the regulatory and legal obstacles previously associated with redeveloping contaminated properties. We have removed 1,150 sites from the Superfund master list of hazardous waste sites in New England, clearing the way for redevelopment. We have developed and issued guidance that clarifies the liability of prospective purchasers, lenders, property owners and others regarding their association with activities at sites, and have worked to limit such liability where it is appropriate. We will bring all of these tools and more to Lowell.

Once the home to a momentous time in our nation's history, Lowell is now the site of a very different revolution. We are embarking on a bold new experiment to work with Lowell and the cadre of federal agencies in turning what once were stumbling blocks into building blocks. Kudos to everyone from Mayor Eileen Donaghue to Acting Director of Planning and Development Robert Malavich for working so hard to secure this landmark designation. Credit also goes to Representative Martin Meehan, who has worked as a strong advocate for the environment, and whose staff assisted in putting together the winning application.

In the coming months the federal government will hold a forum in Lowell to outline the services to be provided to the city of Lowell, who's providing them, and the time line on which the project will proceed. Between now and then, we will also select an individual who will work on Brownfields redevelopment in the city of Lowell. By this time next year, we should be well on our way to assessing, cleaning up and returning to productive use properties throughout the city. The lessons learned from this endeavor will benefit cities across the country in their efforts to battle the blight of abandoned properties.