CUOMO APPROVES ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT FUNDING FOR PROVO

PROVO, UTAH – U.S. Housing and Urban Development Secretary Andrew Cuomo today announced that HUD has approved $3.5 million in guaranteed loans to help Provo transform the site of an old steel mill into a shopping and entertainment destination that will employ 300 people.

Cuomo, who made the announcement today with U.S. Representative Chris Cannon and Provo Mayor Lewis Billings, said that the Section 108 loan guarantees will help redevelop 250 acres in southeastern Provo.

Once completed, the site will house manufacturing, warehouse and distribution buildings, and retail and office space. In addition, Cuomo said that a new 3,500-seat sports complex will be built on the site using non-HUD funds, and that a minor league baseball team affiliated with the Anaheim Angels is moving to Provo and is expected to play its 2001 season in the stadium. Cuomo noted that federal law prohibits the grant from being used to construct the stadium or be used by the team.

He also noted that other site redevelopment funding is being provided by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency and the State of Utah.

"Jobs, jobs, jobs. That’s what HUD’s economic development programs are all about," Cuomo said. "This funding will help turn a blighted site into a source of new jobs and economic activity. Parcels of the redeveloped site will be sold to various companies and business that have agreed to reserve at least 51 percent of the 300 new jobs for people with low- and moderate-income."

"I am excited and honored to be here to mark the redevelopment of the Ironton site," Congressman Cannon said. "The investments and opportunities created by this project mean significant progress for this community. Redevelopment of the site will create new jobs for the people of Provo, which in turn will bolster the economy, creating a prosperous future for Utah county residents and our children."

"This is great news for the people of Provo," Mayor Billings said. "By partnering with HUD, we will revitalize this area while we create new jobs for hundreds of our city's residents."

Section 108 guaranteed loans are loans to communities at reduced interest rates to promote economic development, expand the amount of housing or improve public facilities. With HUD approval, a community uses future Community Development Block Grants, provided by HUD annually on a non-competitive basis, as collateral for the loan at no cost to taxpayers.

The U. S. Steel Corporation formerly owned the site and operated the Ironton steel mill on it until 1962. U.S. Steel donated the site to Brigham Young University in 1968 and BYU sold it to Provo in 1990.

In 1995, U. S. Steel completed an environmental investigation of the site to determine the extent of the pollution and entered into a voluntary clean-up agreement with Provo and the Utah Department of Environmental Quality. U. S. Steel will complete a $4.2 million cleanup of the site in early spring 2001.

In addition to today’s funding, in August 2000, HUD awarded Provo a $1 million Brownfield Economic Development Initiative grant for project engineering and design at the site. Brownfields are abandoned industrial sites such as gasoline stations, oil storage facilities, dry cleaning stores, and other businesses that handled polluting substances.
In 2000, HUD awarded $25 million nationwide in BEDI grants.

Since 1993, the Clinton Administration has taken a number 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 targeted tax incentives to businesses that purchase and clean-up the sites.