Brownfields Assessment Pilot Fact Sheet

BACKGROUND

EPA has selected the City of Utica for a Brownfields Pilot. Utica is a relatively small metropolitan area located along the Mohawk River and Erie Canal. In the 1800s and early 1900s, the majority of businesses were paper and textile milling companies. In the mid-1900s, the area began to support high-tech manufacturing and the textile mills began to shut down. Like many industrial cities in the northeast, Utica (population 61,368) has experienced a significant decline in its tax and job base over the past 50 years. Today, most textile mills are closed or being used by different businesses, and most high-tech industries have moved out of the State.

While many of the abandoned industrial sites in Utica have known contamination, others are only perceived to be contaminated. Adjacent industries are unwilling to purchase properties due to the perceived environmental contamination and associated liabilities. There are many small abandoned and underused commercial/industrial sites in Utica. The City is making active efforts to demolish these buildings, remove the environmental and health threats, and make room for new economic growth. In the past two years, 300 abandoned structures have been demolished; 250 of these sites have been marketed, and some have been sold for redevelopment.

The Pilot will focus on the Foster Paper Company site, an abandoned paper manufacturing facility, and three additional sites.

OBJECTIVES

The Pilot's objective is to prepare the Foster Paper Company site and three additional sites for cleanup and redevelopment. The Pilot plans to: perform site assessments to characterize the extent and degree of contamination; design cleanup plans to prepare the properties for purchase and redevelopment; and provide Utica community members with an understanding of potential environmental and ownership concerns to enable them

ACCOMPLISHMENTS AND ACTIVITIES

Activities planned as part of this Pilot include:

• Conducting Phase I and II environmental assessments of the Foster Paper Company site and three additional sites to determine cleanup levels and objectives required under the New York State Voluntary Cleanup Program;

• Integrating the assessment results into cleanup plans for the sites; and

• Conducting a Community Involvement Plan to encourage community input and decision making for reuse of the sites.

CONTACTS

Office of the Mayor
City of Utica
(315) 792-0152

Regional Brownfields Team
U.S. EPA - Region 2
(212) 637-4314

Visit the EPA Region 2 Brownfields web site at:
http://www.epa.gov/region02/superfund/brownfields/

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/