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HUD Archives: News Releases
HUD No. 98-598 |
Further Information: | For Release |
In the Washington, DC area: 202/708-0685 | Monday |
Or contact your local HUD office | November 16, 1998 |
CUOMO ANNOUNCES 23 COMMUNITIES WILL GET $166 MILLION IN HUD ASSISTANCE TO REDEVELOP BROWNFIELDS AND PROVIDE 9,500 JOBS
WASHINGTON - Housing and Urban Development Secretary Andrew Cuomo today announced $166 million in assistance for 23 communities to transform polluted and abandoned commercial and industrial sites known as brownfields into businesses, homes and recreation sites that will provide about 9,500 permanent jobs.
Cities and counties receiving the HUD assistance to redevelop the brownfields are in California, Connecticut, the District of Columbia, Georgia, Illinois, Indiana, Massachusetts, Michigan, Missouri, New York State, Oklahoma, Pennsylvania, Tennessee and Washington State.
On top of the HUD assistance, businesses and other local, state and federal government agencies are expected to invest more than $811 million in additional funds in the brownfields in the 23 communities. The brownfield redevelopment will create thousands of construction jobs in addition to the 9,500 permanent jobs.
"We are taking polluted sites once given up for dead and bringing them back to life," Cuomo said. "They will be reborn to provide new jobs for workers today and for our children tomorrow."
"Working in partnership with neighborhood residents, businesses and other government agencies, we are proving that the best days of these brownfields are not in the past, but in the future," Cuomo added. "Brownfields can be cleaned up, they can be made safe, and they can once again become powerful engines for job creation and economic growth."
The new HUD assistance to redevelop the brownfields is in the form of $25 million in Brownfields Economic Development Initiative Grants and $141 million in Economic Development Loan Guarantees.
The loan guarantees, also known as the Section 108 Program, provide communities with a source of financing for job creation, housing rehabilitation, and construction of public facilities and large-scale development projects.
Brownfields sites include abandoned factories and other industrial facilities, gasoline stations, oil storage facilities, dry cleaning stores, and other businesses that dealt with polluting substances.
Mayors across the country have made brownfields redevelopment a top priority.
Dee Dee Corradini, President of the U.S. Conference of Mayors and Mayor of Salt Lake City, said: "On behalf of the U.S. Conference of Mayors, I applaud Secretary Andrew Cuomo's announcement. This HUD program is a unique effort to help cities economically revitalize and reintegrate formerly contaminated urban properties into their communities. Mayors look forward to working with HUD to implement the FY99 round of this key program and to expand it for the future."
The HUD assistance announced today will go to:
|
BROWNFIELD GRANTS |
LOAN GUARANTEES |
Huntington Beach, California |
$2 million |
$6 million |
Los Angeles, California |
$1.7 million |
$10.4 million |
Stockton, California |
$500,000 |
$3 million |
Hartford, Connecticut |
$2 million |
$5 million |
Washington, DC |
$300,000 |
$300,000 |
Atlanta, Georgia |
$500,000 |
$500,000 |
Thomson, Georgia |
$250,000 |
$1.25 million |
Chicago, Illinois |
$2.5 million |
$18 million |
Indianapolis, Indiana |
$1 million |
$6 million |
Springfield, Massachusetts |
$1 million |
$2 million |
Benton Harbor, Michigan |
$1 million |
$1.5 million |
Kansas City, Missouri |
$1.25 million |
$10 million |
St. Louis, Missouri |
$1.9 million |
$20 million |
Ithaca, New York |
$350,000 |
$800,000 |
Nassau County, New York |
$500,000 |
$6 million |
Rochester, New York |
$80,000 |
$315,000 |
Syracuse, New York |
$1 million |
$3 million |
Oklahoma City, Oklahoma |
$822,645 |
$4.7 million |
Allegheny County, Pennsylvania |
$2 million |
$6 million |
Bethlehem, Pennsylvania |
$1 million |
$7 million |
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania |
$2 million |
$24.2 million |
Memphis, Tennessee |
$1 million |
$4 million |
King County, Washington |
$300,000 |
$1 million |
Since 1993, the Clinton Administration has taken a series of actions to clean up and redevelop brownfields and return them to productive use, including: providing seed money to communities for revitalization; removing regulatory barriers to redevelopment; and providing a targeted tax incentive to businesses that purchase and clean up these sites.
In May 1997, Vice President Gore announced the Clinton Administration's Brownfields National Partnership, which brings together the resources of more than 20 federal agencies to address brownfields cleanup and redevelopment issues in a coordinated approach. Through the National Partnership, HUD is working closely with other federal agencies to provide communities with the financial and technical assistance necessary to revitalize brownfields.
Federal Housing Finance Board Chairman Bruce A. Morrison said that two weeks ago the Board adopted a regulation expanding the authority of Federal Home Loan Banks to make advances for economic development targeted to brownfields. "We look forward to continuing to work with HUD to bring the nation's cities together with the Federal Home Loan Banks and their community bank members to develop brownfields as productive economic assets in our urban areas," he said.
More information about brownfields redevelopment activities is available on the HUD's web site or by calling 1-800-998-9999.
DETAILS ON RECIPIENTS OF BROWNFIELDS ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT INITIATIVE (BEDI) GRANTS AND SECTION 108 LOAN GUARANTEES
CALIFORNIA
Huntington Beach will receive a $2 million BEDI grant and $6 million in Section 108 loan guarantees. The City is finalizing negotiations with the Robert May Development Company to construct the Waterfront Development Project that will consist of a 500-room resort quality hotel and conference center, a 177-unit residential community and a second 250-room hotel. The redevelopment of the oceanfront property is expected to create 500 jobs. Total project costs are estimated at $205.4 million.
Los Angeles will receive $1.7 million of BEDI funds and $10.4 million in Section 108 loan guarantees to redevelop the 208-acre Goodyear Tract, located in Los Angeles' Empowerment Zone, into a modern business park and retail center that will provide jobs for the community and benefits to the neighborhood. The retail center is being sponsored by a neighborhood community development group and will include a supermarket, drugstore and computer training lab. The City estimates that 407 new jobs will be created in a wide range of skill levels. BEDI funds will be used for environmental remediation and Section 108 funds will be used for gap financing, site acquisition, relocation, site improvement, construction and the purchase of new equipment. The City will also use $300,000 in Community Development Block Grant funds from HUD through its Brownfields Revitalization Fund for site assessment and acquisition. The total project costs are estimated at $31.6 million.
Stockton will receive a $500,000 BEDI grant and $3 million in Section 108 loan guarantees to revitalize its downtown waterfront. Primary uses of the funds will be clearance and demolition, site preparation, and public facilities costs. The City plans to redevelop a site that has been a blighting influence for many years into a plaza that will link the downtown and waterfront areas. Total project costs are estimated at $40.5 million.
CONNECTICUT
Hartford will receive a $2 million BEDI grant and $5 million in Section 108 loan guarantees to support development of Adriaen's Landing project in downtown Hartford. The project will be mixed use complex with entertainment, retail, residential, recreational, parking, hotel and convention facilities. The City expects to create a total of 700 jobs. Total project costs will be approximately $101 million.
DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA
Washington will receive a BEDI grant of $300,000 and $300,000 in Section 108 loan guarantees to fund the Earth Conservation Corps in the renovation of the PEPCO pump house, which is located on the west side of the Anacostia River in the federally-designated Enterprise Community. The project will employ nearly 40 individuals. The BEDI and Section 108 loan guarantees will be used for lead paint and asbestos abatement, removal of existing pumping equipment, retrofitting the structure to accommodate new intended use, development of infrastructure and landscaping of the site. The estimated total project cost is $1.2 million.
GEORGIA
Atlanta will receive a BEDI grant for $500,000 and $500,000 in Section 108 loan guarantees to assist in the redevelopment of the North Yards Business Park in the Atlanta Empowerment Zone. The BEDI grant funds will be used for environmental remediation, with the Section 108 funds used for demolition of dilapidated structures. The Business Park will be developed and owned by a limited liability company called COPA Inc. that is made up of three partners representing neighborhood residents, local government and the business community. The project when completed will employ 1,000 individuals. The project will include $85 million in private investment.
Thomson, located in the Central Savannah River Area Enterprise Community, will receive a $250,000 BEDI grant and $1.25 million in Section 108 loan guarantees to redevelop a former industrial site into a manufacturing facility for International Housing Industries, Inc. The company manufactures structural insulated panels for residential and commercial construction markets. The redevelopment of the facility will create 30 manufacturing jobs in the community. The estimated total project costs are $2.8 million.
ILLINOIS
Chicago will receive a $2.5 million BEDI grant and $18 million in Section 108 loan guarantees to spur industrial redevelopment at five sites. Businesses that ultimately locate at these sites will provide 600 jobs and revitalize nearly 85 acres. Redevelopment sites will include: (1) a vacant 37-acre site in the Greater Southwest Industrial Corridor where the City is negotiating with Stylemaster Inc., a minority-owned box and container manufacturer; (2) a 4-acre site located in the historic Stockyards; (3) a 16-acre sites within the Pilsen Industrial Corridor to expand Midland Industries; (4) a 24-acre site in the Stockyards Corridor; and (5) a 2.3 acres site in the Pilsen Industrial Corridor. Several of these sites are within the City's Empowerment Zone boundaries. Chicago earlier received $54 million in Section 108 loan guarantees and Economic Development Initiative grants from HUD to redevelop brownfields into industrial parks.
INDIANA
Indianapolis will receive a $1 million BEDI grant and $6 million in Section 108 loan guarantees to develop I-70 Keystone Industrial Park. The City projects up to 950 jobs to be created The funds will be used for acquisition and site preparation costs. Total development costs estimated at $50 million.
MASSACHUSETTS
Springfield will receive a BEDI grant for $1 million and $2 million in Section 108 loan guarantees. The city in partnership with Westmass Development Corporation will redevelop an 80-acre brownfield to create Memorial Industrial Park II. The redevelopment will create over 1,800 new jobs. BEDI grant funds will be used to remediate environmental contamination and Section 108 loan guarantees will be used to acquire and improve the site. The project is expected to attract at least $20 million in other public and private investment.
MICHIGAN
Benton Harbor will receive a $1 million BEDI grant and $1.5 million in Section 108 loan guarantees for the redevelopment of a 422-acre area encompassed by the Edgewater redevelopment plan. The development is planned to include two marinas, homes and recreational facilities. The City and its partner, Cornerstone Alliance, plan to use the HUD funds to construct new industrial and commercial space and to develop infrastructure for a new state-of-the-art training facility at Lake Michigan College and expansion of Ritz-Craft, a manufacturer of modular homes. The City estimates the development will create up to 125 jobs. The estimated total project costs are $29.7 million.
MISSOURI
Kansas City will receive a $1.25 million BEDI grant and $10 million in Section 108 loan guarantees to promote continued development of housing in the Beacon Hill area of the City. New townhouses units and new single-family homes will be constructed in conjunction with the rehabilitation of existing homes. The Beacon Hill Project area contains 11 brownfield sites with known, suspected or perceived environmental problems. BEDI grant funds will be used for site characterization, remediation, demolition and site acquisition. The Section 108 funds will be used in the project for collateral of front-end development costs, including acquisition, relocation and site preparation. The estimated total project costs are $65.7 million.
St. Louis will receive a $1.9 million BEDI grant and $20 million in Section 108 loan guarantees to promote commercial redevelopment of the 10-acre City Hospital Complex and Malcolm A. Bliss Mental Health Center. The site is part of the City's Near Southside Revitalization Area, which is located within the HUD-designated Enterprise Community and includes the Darst-Webbe and Peabody-Clinton public housing developments. The plan envisions the development of a mixed-income, mixed-use neighborhood. The grant will provide for site acquisition, remediation, demolition, site preparation and infrastructure development. The estimated total project costs are $24 million. In addition, HUD earlier invested another $46 million in public housing revitalization funds in the Near Southside Revitalization Area.
NEW YORK
Ithaca will receive a $350,000 BEDI grant and $800,000 in Section 108 loan guarantees to purchase, clean up and redevelop the 2.4-acre Ithaca Boating Center. The project is projected to create 74 full-time jobs and 32 part-time jobs. The project is part of the City's Canal Corridor Initiative Project to revitalize Inlet Island and the Cayuga Inlet waterfront by spurring economic development and creating a waterfront promenade. HUD funds will address the costs of environmental remediation and leverage substantial private investment to bring the project to completion. The Section 108 funds will also provide funding for the purchase of restaurant equipment and furniture. Total estimated project costs are $2.4 million.
Nassau County will receive a $500,000 BEDI grant and $6 million in Section 108 loan guarantees to revitalize the waterfront in Glen Cove. Funds will be used for land acquisition, rehabilitation costs, relocation payments and site preparation. BEDI funds will be used for interest payments. The Section 108 funds will be used for purchase of a site known as Captain's Cove and remediation of the property. These site are part of the Glen Cove Creek Waterfront Revitalization Plan to clean up and return 214 acres of environmentally contaminated property back into productive use as a regional tourist destination point and high-speed ferry port. The project is expected to create 620 jobs. The estimated total project costs are $12.5 million.
Rochester will receive an $80,000 BEDI grant and $315,000 in Section 108 loan guarantees to clean up a site at 1630 Dewey Ave. to prepare it for revitalization as a commercial area.
Syracuse will receive a $1 million BEDI grant and $3 million in Section 108 loan guarantees to acquire and remediate a 15-acre sites to transform two former industrial sites into a light industrial, business and commercial park. The Crossroads Commercial Park will result in the creation of new job opportunities within one of the City's most distressed area. The development of the Crossroads Commercial Park is expected to result in the introduction of 20 new business and create an estimated 200 new jobs. The BEDI and Section 108 loan guarantee funds will be used for land acquisition, site preparation, clearance and demolition, infrastructure improvement and economic development activities. The estimated total project costs are $4.9 million.
OKLAHOMA
Oklahoma City will receive an $822,645 BEDI grant and $4.7 million in Section 108 loan guarantees to redevelop the J.C. Penney and John A. Brown buildings on Commerce Street. The funding will be for site preparation, building rehabilitation, clearance and demolition. Revitalization of the buildings, located in the HUD-designated Enterprise Community, will provide significant retail office space and focus attention on Oklahoma City's Capitol Hill community. The project will create about 135 jobs. The buildings, which have been vacant for over 12 years, will house the Community Action Agency and offer space for business incubators. The Community Action Agency serves the city and community with training, job placement, small business loans and business incubation opportunities. The estimated total project costs are $5.8 million.
PENNSYLVANIA
Allegheny County, Duquesne, McKeesport and the Regional Industrial Development Corporation of Southwestern Pennsylvania will receive a $2 million BEDI grant and $6 million in Section 108 loan guarantees. The funds will be used to capitalize the Riverplace Equity Development Fund in an attempt to redevelop former USX steel properties. Using federal, state, local and private investment, the Equity Development Fund will prepare land and buildings for sale to increase the availability of industrial and light industrial sites, prepare existing buildings for reuse, and increase the value of the land and minimize delays that deter investor development. By attracting new investment to Duquesne and McKeesport, the cities will increase employment and income and raise the local tax base in the communities. HUD funding will also be used to leverage $3.7 million for the State's Redevelopment Capital Assistance Program. An estimated 300 jobs will be created through redevelopment of these sites. The total estimated projects costs are $14.4 million.
Bethlehem will receive a $1 million BEDI grant and $7 million in Section 108 loan guarantees to finance road and utility improvements to permit the development of the Bethlehem Works project at the former Bethlehem Steel Plant. When completed, the facility will house a recreation and entertainment complex, a hotel/conference center, Discovery Center of Science and Technology, restaurants, retail shopping and a Technology Center for incubator start-up companies. The central feature of the development will be the National Museum of Industrial History, a Smithsonian Institution affiliate museum. The first phase of development will be hotel with conference and restaurant facilities, a cinema, two ice skating rinks and restaurant and retail space. The 575,000 square-foot Phase 1 development is expected to create 757 full- time jobs. The estimated costs of Phase 1 are $122.7 million, with a total estimated project costs of $450 million.
Philadelphia will receive a $2 million BEDI grant and $24.2 million in Section 108 loan guarantees. The Philadelphia Industrial Development Corporation will redevelop two sites. The first redevelopment project is a partnership between Grid Properties, Ltd and the City to acquire a 2-acre site in the Philadelphia Empowerment Zone to develop a mixed use retail and entertainment complex called Jump Street USA. The complex will house a three-level structure with retail occupying the first two levels. A multiplex movie theater with up to 12 screens, along with restaurants, will occupy the third level. The project will contribute 540 full-time permanent jobs to the Empowerment Zone and 200 construction jobs. The total project costs are estimated at $52.7 million. The second redevelopment project is the West Park Side Shopping Center. The City will assemble private and public land to develop approximately eight acres in the West Philadelphia Empowerment Zone. The West Park Side Shopping Center will include a supermarket, 30,000 square-feet of retail space, and a community center and day care facility. The project will create approximately 170 construction and 160 permanent full-time jobs. The shopping center will bring needed retail and job opportunities to the Empowerment Zone and eliminate a blighted, environmentally contaminated site from one of Philadelphia's most underprivileged communities. The total project costs are $15.9 million.
TENNESSEE
Memphis will receive a $1 million BEDI grant and $4 million in Section 108 loan guarantees to acquire and remediate the Firestone Tire and Rubber Plant for reuse as an industrial park. The plant closed in 1983, resulting in the loss of 1,680 jobs. The plant has had a blighting influence on the community in the HUD-designated Enterprise Community. The environmental contamination has stigmatized the site and deterred redevelopment. Without HUD funding for remediation, the site will remain a blighting influence. The City estimates that once the site is redeveloped, the new industrial park will create 400 jobs.
WASHINGTON
King County will receive a $300,000 BEDI grant and $1 million in Section 108 loan guarantees to redevelop a site that formerly served as a repository for Concrete Kiln Dust. The funds will assist Seattle Construction Services, Inc. in developing an industrial business park on a 4.42 acre site. The park when completed will create 50 new jobs. Without the BEDI, the cost of environmental remediation would make the project unfeasible. The project is located within the Duwamish Industrial Corridor. The Duwamish Coalition, a 35-member group created by the County as part of its Growth Management Planning Council, ranked the industrial park site first among its nine demonstration projects. Total project costs are estimated at $6.5 million.
Content Archived: January 20, 2009
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