Brownfields 2004 Grant Fact Sheet

Trenton, NJ

EPA BROWNFIELDS PROGRAM

EPA's Brownfields Program empowers states, communities, and other stakeholders in economic development 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. On January 11, 2002, the President signed into law the Small Business Liability Relief and Brownfields Revitalization Act. Under the Brownfields Law, EPA provides financial assistance to eligible applicants through four competitive grant programs: assessment grants, revolving loan fund grants, cleanup grants, and job training grants. Additionally, funding support is provided to state and tribal response programs through a separate mechanism.

CLEANUP GRANT

$200,000 for hazardous substances

EPA has selected the City of Trenton for a brownfields cleanup grant. Grant funds will be used to clean up hazardous substances contamination at a 3.6-acre vacant site on Oxford Street that has been used as a pottery factory, building products warehouse, wire products fabrication facility, small foundry, automotive storage yard, and an automobile body shop. Environmental concerns include above-ground fuel tanks, underground fuel storage tanks, and abandoned drums.

COMMUNITY DESCRIPTION

The City of Trenton was selected to receive a brownfields cleanup grant. The city, which has 85,403 residents, has identified at least 200 brownfields. The area around the site has a population of 1,343. Of these residents, 30 percent live below the poverty level, and the area has a 9.2 percent unemployment rate. The neighborhood is distressed and contains many vacant and dilapidated homes. In this neighborhood, the city plans to build approximately 30 new homes, a park, and open space adjacent to a state park and the D&R Canal. The planned redevelopment would improve the neighborhood, make viable the additional renovations planned for the community surrounding the site, and significantly alleviate the housing shortage in the area by providing quality affordable housing.

CONTACTS

For further information, including specific grant contacts, additional grant information, brownfields news and events, and publications and links, visit the EPA Brownfields web site at: www.epa.gov/brownfields.

EPA Region 2 Brownfields Team
212-637-4314
http://www.epa.gov/region02/superfund/brownfields/

Grant Recipient: Trenton, NJ
609-989-3501

The cooperative agreement for this grant has not yet been negotiated; therefore, activities described in this fact sheet are subject to change.