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EPA AWARDS SUPPLEMENTAL BROWNFIELDS PILOT GRANT TO CLEARWATER, FLORIDA

Release Date: 04/12/2000
Contact Information: Carl Terry, EPA Media Relations, 404-562-8325

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency announced today that it has awarded Supplemental Assistance to the city of Clearwater, Florida for its Brownfields Assessment Demonstration Pilot. In addition to the $50,000 supplemental assistance funding, the City will receive $50,000 that will be used for greenspace purposes. “The Agency’s financial commitment is intended to assist Clearwater in its effort to bring together community groups, investors, lenders, developers and other stakeholders to develop plans to turn its brownfields areas into environmentally safe and economically attractive areas,” said John H. Hankinson, Jr., EPA Regional Administrator. “Pilots, such as this one, focus on EPA’s primary mission, protecting human health and the environment.” Clearwater’s brownfields activities focus on a conglomeration of small industrial, commercial , and residential entities that were built on the fill of former wetlands as part of urban redevelopment activities 40 years ago. The original pilot began assessment and outreach activities in the area, including developing a strategic environmental justice plan, but additional funding is needed. The supplemental funding will help Clearwater continue its efforts to revitalize this critical area in the heart of the city. The city’s ultimate objective is to eliminate potential health and safety hazards by cleaning up the brownfields sites and returning them to productive reuse, to benefit the city and its citizens. The greenspace funding will be used to support at least three greenspace creation and improvement projects. One such project, the Stevenson Creek Ecosystem Restoration Project and Associated Park Land, is designed to clean up and restore Stevenson Creek. The Creek flows through the heart of Clearwater’s largest minority neighborhood and discharges into the Clearwater Harbor (connected to the Gulf of Mexico). Other projects include the creation of urban parks, open space, a town pond, and a community center. EPA defines brownfields as abandoned, idled, or under-used industrial and commercial facilities where expansion or redevelopment is complicated by real or perceived environmental contamination. EPA’s Brownfields Economic Redevelopment Initiative is an organized commitment to help communities revitalize such properties environmentally and economically, mitigate potential health risks and restore economic vitality to areas where brownfields exist. Experience gained from the brownfields assessment pilot, along with partnerships and outreach activities, is providing a growing knowledge base to help direct the Agency’s Brownfields Initiative.