Brownfields 2005 Grant Fact Sheet

Elizabeth, 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, President George W. Bush 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.

ASSESSMENT GRANT

$200,000 for hazardous substances
EPA has selected the City of Elizabeth for a brownfields assessment grant. Hazardous substances grant funds will be used to perform a Phase II site assessment on the Livingston Street site where a former 7,500-square-foot anodizing plant stands. The site is thought to be contaminated with chromium and other heavy metals. Funds also will be used to conduct community outreach and develop a cleanup plan.

COMMUNITY DESCRIPTION

The City of Elizabeth was selected to receive a brownfields assessment grant. Elizabeth has a population of approximately 123,000. The target area is the Elizabethport neighborhood of Elizabeth, which is a federal Enterprise Community. Elizabethport has a large Hispanic and African-American population, and its per capita income is lower than the city as a whole. The neighborhood is surrounded by industrial facilities and has 22 sites that have been identified as contaminated by the New Jersey Department of the Environment. This assessment is part of a larger redevelopment effort in the neighborhood that is well underway and will bring commercial shops, such as a supermarket, pharmacy and other retail establishments, as well as market-rate housing units, to the area. These activities are also expected to contribute to the revitalization of the Elizabethport marina and recreational area.

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: City of Elizabeth, NJ
908-820-4160

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