$1.8 M in Stimulus Goes to Brownfields' Jobs
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency and the California Department of Toxic Substances Control (DTSC) recently announced $5 million in grants and low-interest loans that will help bring hundreds of jobs to the San Francisco Bay Area and turn contaminated property into land for apartments, retail shops, day care centers and a park.
Funds for the revitalization work will come from the $1.8 million in federal stimulus money DTSC received from EPA over the summer, along with money from the department’s Revolving Loan Fund Program, which offers low-interest loans and grants to clean up brownfields. The Revolving Loan Fund, launched three years ago with a $3 million grant from EPA, is overseen by DTSC in partnership with the San Francisco Redevelopment Agency and the city of Los Angeles. The partnership is expected to approve additional grants and loans in the near future.
“Our state and local partners are turning problem properties along San Francisco's central waterfront into community assets,” said Laura Yoshii, EPA's acting regional administrator for the Pacific Southwest. "These projects will deliver a direct environmental benefit."
The San Francisco projects include:
- Lead-contaminated land at 2235 Third Street will be cleaned up using a $1.675 million low-interest loan, delivered through the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act. The project will create about 200 new construction jobs for two years. The Martin Building Company of San Francisco plans to turn two former warehouse buildings on the central waterfront site into part of a complex that will include about 180 residential units with terraces and balconies, a restaurant, retail stores and a day-care center. Martin Building is seeking LEED Gold Certification for the project.
- Lead-contaminated property at 178 Townsend Street will be cleaned up using a $1.25 million low-interest loan. This money comes from DTSC's Revolving Loan Fund. The project is expected to create about 100 new construction jobs for two years. Martin Building plans to incorporate a 121-year-old building into a project that will feature 94 apartments, 46 parking spaces, a ground-floor restaurant and a day-care center. The project is in the South Beach neighborhood.
- Part of the Mission Bay development project between San Francisco Bay and Interstate 280 needs attention before a public park can be built. DTSC said a $200,000 grant from its Revolving Loan Fund will be used. The development calls for the eventual construction of up to 6,000 new housing units, millions of square feet of office and retail space and a new research campus for the University of California, San Francisco.
Click here to read more on brownfields at EPonline.com