EPA's Brownfields Program empowers states, communities, and other stakeholders to work together to prevent, assess, safely clean up, and sustainably reuse brownfields. A brownfield site is real property, the expansion, redevelopment, or reuse of which may be complicated by the presence or potential presence of a hazardous substance, pollutant, or contaminant. The Small Business Liability Relief and Brownfields Revitalization Act of 2002, as amended by the Brownfields Utilization, Investment and Local Development Act of 2018, was passed to help states and communities around the country clean up and revitalize brownfield sites. Under this law, EPA provides financial assistance to eligible applicants through five competitive grant programs: Multipurpose Grants, Assessment Grants, Revolving Loan Fund Grants, Cleanup Grants, and Environmental Workforce Development and Job Training Grants. Additionally, funding support is provided to state and tribal response programs through a separate mechanism.
$500,000
EPA has selected the City of Spokane for a Brownfields Assessment Grant. Community-wide grant funds will be used to conduct eight Phase I and six Phase II environmental site assessments. Grant funds also will be used to develop four reuse plans and one area-wide plan and support community engagement activities. The target area for this grant is the Northeast Spokane neighborhood, which contains the abandoned Hillyard Railyard. Priority sites include portions of the former railyard, a former lumber yard, older residences in a mixed commercial and industrial area, as well as a nursing home, a vacant tire shop, and a gas station that were destroyed by a fire.