Brownfields, which are typically abandoned industrial sites either polluted or perceived to be polluted, have undergone a transformation for real estate developers and city planners as sites of potential urban redevelopment at reduced costs.
This spring, Florence and Sheffield officials expect to learn if they will receive federal Environmental Protection Agency grants to be used for pollutant assessment and even some possible remediation.
This is Florence’s first attempt and Sheffield’s third to receive EPA grants of $200,000 for hazardous substances and $200,000 for petroleum-specific assessments.
For either city, the money could be a chance at rejuvenating unused industrial land that raises environmental questions because of its previous use.
“Most cities started as industrial cities, but as these industries move out, planners are faced with redevelopment of those sites,” said Florence planner Melissa Bailey.
Once Florence’s industrial center, the recently rezoned Sweetwater Arts and Entertainment District is of particular interest as a major study site if the grants are awarded.
For Sheffield, the focus would be in an industrial area off Broadway and the former boat plant off West 20th Avenue, said Sheffield Mayor Billy Don Anderson.
Anderson said brownfields remediation would benefit the city since Sheffield has a limited amount of property available.
From an environmental conscience, “Brownfields redevelopment is a way to recycle the land back into use,” said Eugene Sak, a partner in ProSouth Commercial Realty. He received brownfields certification from M.I.T. in 2006.
“As a developer, it offers an opportunity to bring land back to a normal market at a discounted rate,” he said.
“The goal is to reinvest in urban areas that have decayed,” said Pete Bosanic, president of PM Environmental Inc. that consulted with Florence on its EPA grant application.
“In order to do that, there had to be some incentive for people to buy property and redevelop.”
That incentive came from the EPA, which started a nationwide push for brownfields redevelopment with the passage of the Brownfields Revitalization and Environmental Restoration Act of 2001.
Even if the two cities do not receive money to assess and remediate brownfields, state incentives still exist.
The Alabama Department of Environmental Management offers developers tax incentives.
For example, remediation of brownfields can be repaid through property tax or sales and use tax exemptions, said Bosanic.
“Brownfields can be reclaimed and can be brought back to public use and private use,” Sak said.
“Brownfields is given such a stigma, and more often there shouldn’t be a stigma,” he said. “If it’s been cleaned up, it’s been cleaned up.”
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