PILOT SNAPSHOT
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Date of Announcement: July 1998
Amount: $200,000 |
Profile: The Pilot targets the 1.5-square-mile east Burlington area.
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BACKGROUND
EPA has selected the City of Burlington for a Brownfields Pilot. The City
(population 42,365) is located in the Piedmont Crescent region
of North Carolina, between Charlotte and Research Triangle. The
majority of the City's African-American, elderly and low-income
population resides in east Burlington, an area comprising 1.5
square miles. Once a bustling textile center, east Burlington
has experienced a decline in businesses and employment opportunities
as the local economy shifted, leading to rapid development of
greenfields in the City's western area.
For nearly a century, Burlington served as a textile center,
but in recent years its economy shifted and the City is now home
to many medical and high-tech businesses. Until the 1980s, Burlington's
major manufacturing facilities were located in east Burlington.
In the last decade, however, much of the industrial and commercial
development in the City has shifted to the south and west, close
to the interstate. The closures and downsizing of several textile
mills have limited the employment opportunities for east Burlington's
residents. While overall the City of Burlington experiences a
good quality of life and prosperous business climate, neighborhoods
in east Burlington continue to experience economic decline and
are threatened with the onset of blight. Approximately 22% of
the land and buildings in east Burlington are vacant; many of
them are suspected or perceived to be environmentally contaminated.
OBJECTIVES
Burlington's primary objective is to establish a proactive, broad-based redevelopment
model and plan that will lead to the cleanup, reuse and development
of brownfields sites in the community. The Pilot plans to use
community steering committees, site assessments, and the creation
of an information clearinghouse/database as key factors to achieve
its objective.
ACCOMPLISHMENTS AND ACTIVITIES
Activities planned as part of this Pilot include:
- Conducting Phase I and Phase II environmental assessments of all potentially contaminated property in east Burlington;
- Instituting a community outreach program;
- Creating a steering committee to utilize citizen involvement and collaborative problem- solving; and
- Developing an inventory and information database system to
help facilitate environmental cleanup, economic planning, and
redevelopment.
The cooperative agreement for this Pilot has not yet been negotiated; therefore,
activities described in this fact sheet are subject to change.
CONTACTS
City of Burlington, Planning Department
(336) 222-5110
Regional Brownfields Team
EPA - Region 4
(404) 562-8661
Visit the EPA Region 4 Brownfields web site at:
http://www.epa.gov/region4/waste/bf/
For further information, including specific Pilot contacts,
additional Pilot information, brownfields news and events, and
publications and links, visit the EPA Brownfields web site at:
http://www.epa.gov/brownfields/
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