What is a Brownfield?

What is a Phase I and Phase II ESA?

How does EPA's Brownfield program benefit my town?

Can a private property owner benefit from the use their town's EPA grant funds?

What happens if I own a property and contamination was found?

I live in Rome - how can I get involved?

What is a Brownfield?
In simple terms, a Brownfield is a vacant or under-utilized property that may be contaminated and has redevelopment potential.

What is a Phase I and Phase II ESA?
A Phase I Environmental Site Assessment (ESA) reviews the historical uses of a particular property to find if the past uses could have impacted the soil or ground water at the site. If a condition is identified during the Phase I that is a concern, a Phase II can be conducted. During a Phase II, soil and ground water samples are collected and analyzed to find out if the historical site use has caused contamination to the soil or ground water.

How does EPA's Brownfield program benefit Rome?
EPA's grant program provides funds to determine what type of contamination may be present at a property, funds to obtain community inout and plan redevelopment, funds to clean up eligible properties, and funds to help market the property. These steps help improve the health of the community, and create incentives for businesses and developers to consider your town's properties for their use, which in turn can create jobs and tax revenues for your town.

Can a private property owner benefit from the use their town's EPA grant funds?
Yes, this is a common scenario. The grantee may identify a privately owned property that they believe has good redevelopment potential. The City may invite that owner to allow the City to conduct assessment of the property in the hopes that their work will reduce uncertianty associated with environmental conditions at the site, and thereby make the property more attarctive to prospective developers or businesses. This also reduces the propsective buyer's due diligence cost since the assessment work is paid by the City with grant funds.

What happens if I own a property and contamination was found?
Fortunately, the EPA Grant funds can be used to develop remediation plans. Unfortunately, EPA Assessment funds can not be utilized for private property owners to clean up their properties. If the properties are owned by a municipality, they can apply for cleanup funds from EPA. Frequently the developer of the property, a private entity, will pay for clean up as part of their redevelopment.

I live in Rome - How can I get involved?
The City will host public meetings, send out newsletters, and update this web page to keep people informed of the grant process. Once the environmental issues are understood, the community will have the opportunity to bring ideas for the redevelopment of these Brownfield properties. Check back to this web page to keep up to date!