EPA to provide $300,000 for environmental investigation

For the City Times

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency recently announced that the city of Stevens Point will receive $300,000 in Brownfields funding through its Multipurpose, Assessment and Cleanup (MAC) Grants.

The funding will help the city conduct environmental investigations of abandoned industrial and commercial properties that have been targeted for redevelopment.

“EPA’s Brownfields program is providing critical funding to help empower Wisconsin communities to address the environmental, public health and social issues associated with contaminated land,” said acting EPA Regional Administrator Cheryl Newton. “EPA commends community leaders for using these funds to take vital steps forward to improve the environment and the local economy. These grants underscore EPA’s commitment to lifting up and protecting all communities – especially overburdened and underserved communities – throughout Wisconsin.”

Stevens Point will use its grant to fund environmental investigations focusing on the downtown and Division Street corridors. Properties include a “former industrial and railyard site, an underutilized automotive dealership, and a historic building that formerly housed a convent.”

The award is the second EPA Brownfields grant for Stevens Point. The city has already assessed 15 properties with EPA funds received in 2018.

“We’re very happy to have been chosen again for the EPA grant. The development on the former Lullaby site and others may not have been possible without the partnership with the Environmental Protection Agency’s brownfield grants and we’ll look forward to continuing that successful partnership with this new award,” said Stevens Point Mayor Mike Wiza.

Nationally, a total $65.5 million will be awarded to 151 grantees to support underserved and economically disadvantaged communities across the country assess and clean up contaminated and abandoned industrial and commercial properties. Approximately 50 percent of selected recipients are receiving EPA Brownfields grant funding for the first time and more than 85 percent are located in or serving small communities.

The list of the fiscal year 2021 applicants selected for funding is available at www.epa.gov/sites/production/files/2021-04/documents/fy21_bf_mac_grant_selections_may_2021.pdf.