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Brownfields 2008 Grant Fact Sheet
Waterloo, IA
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 this 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 Waterloo for a brownfields cleanup grant. Hazardous substances grant funds will be used to clean up the former Chamberlain Manufacturing Company site at 550 Esther Street, a vacant metal fabricating plant and munitions facility contaminated with trichloroethylene and inorganic contaminants.
COMMUNITY DESCRIPTION
The City of Waterloo was selected to receive a brownfields cleanup grant. Once known as the "Factory City of Iowa," Waterloo (population 68,747) now is facing significant economic hardships. Severe economic stress has caused divestiture of industrial and commercial facilities and the city's housing stock, particularly in the area surrounding the former Chamberlain Manufacturing Company site. The population around the site has high unemployment rates and low-income wages, and nearly half of the residents are minorities. Nearly 1,300 residents live within half a mile of the cleanup site, and a municipal park and school are in close proximity. The abandoned buildings on the property are detrimental to property values of the surrounding homes. Cleanup of the site is expected to reduce environmental justice concerns in the neighborhood, contribute to removing the stigma associated with the site, and help the city cultivate reinvestment opportunities.
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.
EPA Region 7 Brownfields Team
800-223-0425
EPA Region 7 Brownfields web site
Grant Recipient: City of Waterloo, IA
319-291-4366
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.