[xtypo_dropcap]M[/xtypo_dropcap]assachusetts’ city of Somerville recently received $400,000 to clean up contaminated and unusable property, known as brownfields, in a grant from the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). Brownfields are parcels of land where redevelopment is hindered by the presence of hazardous substances, contaminants, or pollutants.
Somerville has been a site of industrial operations such as chemical storage facilities, glass factories, and lead work for most of its 160-year history, according to the EPA. The city is home to 376 brownfield sites, the majority of which are located in its target neighborhoods of East Somerville and Union Square.
The presence of brownfields near residential areas is significantly reducing property values, housing sales, and rentals in the city. The region faces significant financial challenges due to the economic downturn, which resulted in large state aid cuts.
Its commercial properties, many of which are currently brownfields, are the only remaining source from which the city can increase its tax base, says the EPA.
“This funding for Somerville will help the local economy and will continue to assist in creating and keeping good jobs in the area. With this additional money the city will be able to fund more local cleanup projects,” said Curt Spalding, regional administrator for EPA New England, announcing the grant this week.
Somerville is New England’s most densely populated city, with 76,000 residents fitting into 4.1 square miles.
In 2007, Somerville cleaned up one of its previous brownfields, to create the Allen Street Community Garden, using the EPA’s Brownfields Cleanup grant. The area has remained idle since the 1950s. The community garden now serves as a place for community members to grow flowers and vegetables.
The grant comes from the Small Business Liability Relief and Brownfields Revitalization Act, which was passed in 2002. Eligible regions are granted funding in loans or grants to revitalize dormant brownfields into profitable property.
Since the beginning of the Brownfields Program, the EPA has provided $24 million through 50 loans and 41 grants for brownfields cleanup in New England. The funding has resulted in $164 million in public and private cleanup and redevelopment investment and 925 jobs in cleanup, construction, and redevelopment, according to the EPA.
”Somerville’s Brownfields Program has allowed us to assess and clean up numerous sites throughout the city, and maximize the potential of our developable land in such a densely populated community,” said Somerville Mayor Joseph A. Curtatone in a statement.
Somerville has been a site of industrial operations such as chemical storage facilities, glass factories, and lead work for most of its 160-year history, according to the EPA. The city is home to 376 brownfield sites, the majority of which are located in its target neighborhoods of East Somerville and Union Square.
The presence of brownfields near residential areas is significantly reducing property values, housing sales, and rentals in the city. The region faces significant financial challenges due to the economic downturn, which resulted in large state aid cuts.
Its commercial properties, many of which are currently brownfields, are the only remaining source from which the city can increase its tax base, says the EPA.
“This funding for Somerville will help the local economy and will continue to assist in creating and keeping good jobs in the area. With this additional money the city will be able to fund more local cleanup projects,” said Curt Spalding, regional administrator for EPA New England, announcing the grant this week.
Somerville is New England’s most densely populated city, with 76,000 residents fitting into 4.1 square miles.
In 2007, Somerville cleaned up one of its previous brownfields, to create the Allen Street Community Garden, using the EPA’s Brownfields Cleanup grant. The area has remained idle since the 1950s. The community garden now serves as a place for community members to grow flowers and vegetables.
The grant comes from the Small Business Liability Relief and Brownfields Revitalization Act, which was passed in 2002. Eligible regions are granted funding in loans or grants to revitalize dormant brownfields into profitable property.
Since the beginning of the Brownfields Program, the EPA has provided $24 million through 50 loans and 41 grants for brownfields cleanup in New England. The funding has resulted in $164 million in public and private cleanup and redevelopment investment and 925 jobs in cleanup, construction, and redevelopment, according to the EPA.
”Somerville’s Brownfields Program has allowed us to assess and clean up numerous sites throughout the city, and maximize the potential of our developable land in such a densely populated community,” said Somerville Mayor Joseph A. Curtatone in a statement.
