Brownfields 2007 Grant Fact Sheet

North Central Texas Council of Governments

EPA BROWNFIELDS PROGRAM

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. 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.

REVOLVING LOAN FUND GRANT

$1,500,000 for hazardous substances
$1,500,000 for petroleum
EPA has selected the North Central Texas Council of Governments (NCTCOG) for a brownfields revolving loan fund grant. The grant will be used to capitalize a revolving loan fund from which the NCTCOG will provide loans and subgrants to support cleanup activities for sites contaminated with petroleum and hazardous substances. Grant funds will be used to provide and manage loans, and support community outreach activities. Coalition partners include NCTCOG, Dallas Area Rapid Transit, Fort Worth Transportation Authority, Denton County Transportation Authority, and the City of Cleburne.

COMMUNITY DESCRIPTION

The North Central Texas Council of Governments (NCTCOG) was selected to receive a brownfields revolving loan fund grant. The NCTCOG Metropolitan Planning Area includes the Counties of Collin, Dallas, Denton, Rockwall, and Tarrant, and portions of the contiguous Counties of Ellis, Johnson, Kaufman, and Parker (combined population 650,339). The NCTCOG intends to target sites located along transit lines in southeastern Dallas County and southeastern Fort Worth, where the poverty rates are 23.5 and 26.1 percent, respectively. The population in both of these areas is predominantly minorities. With the passage of air quality legislation, many manufacturers moved out of southeastern Dallas County, leaving the county with more than its share of abandoned brownfields. The City of Fort Worth has identified 350 brownfield sites, 169 of which are in southeastern area. These brownfields are associated with lower property values, detract development interest, and contribute to blight in the target area. Brownfields cleanup will stimulate public and private investment, create opportunities for residential and commercial development, and generate jobs and tax revenues in economically disadvantaged areas.

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 6 Brownfields Team
214-665-6780
http://www.epa.gov/region6/brownfields

Grant Recipient: North Central Texas Council of Governments
817-608-2380

The information presented in this fact sheet comes from the grant proposal; EPA cannot attest to the accuracy of this information. The cooperative agreement for the grant has not yet been negotiated. Therefore, activities described in this fact sheet are subject to change.