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Worcester is Awarded $1 Million for Brownfields Loan Fund

Release Date: 05/03/2002
Contact Information: Andrew Spejewski, EPA Press Office, 617-918-1014

BOSTON -- The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency announced today that the City of Worcester has been awarded a $1 million grant to set up a brownfields revolving loan fund. The fund will be used to make no interest or low interest loans to businesses to carry out cleanup activities at Brownfields properties in Worcester.

"One of the most important ways EPA can help create better towns and cities is by encouraging the redevelopment of abandoned properties, "said Robert W. Varney, regional administrator for EPA's New England Office. "This grant will provide much-needed financial support to businesses and developers looking to clean up contaminated properties in Worcester."

"Brownfields remediation is perhaps the single most important issue for the city of Worcester and its economic future," said Mayor Timothy P. Murray. "This grant is going to go a long way towards us providing jobs and housing opportunities for our citizens."

Over 200 sites in Worcester are classified by the state as contaminated. While the city is 37 square miles in area, only 100 acres of privately owned land currently is on the market and available for development, making brownfields redevelopment a priority for the city.

The city is focusing on a 25-acre, inner-city, former industrial site known as the South Worcester Industrial Park (SWIP), where EPA grants have already helped fund site assessments on city-owned properties. The city is currently working on a redevelopment plan for the site, with a potential build-out of 1.7 million square feet of industrial, manufacturing, and warehouse space.

EPA has already awarded $237,000 in brownfields grants to the city of Worcester, as well as $200,000 to the Central Massachusetts Economic Development Agency (CMEDA) for assessments and $500,000 to CMEDA for a revolving loan fund.

Nationally, for every dollar of federal money spent on Brownfields cleanup activities cities and states produce or leverage $2.48 in private investment. To date, EPA's Brownfields program has leveraged over $4 billion nationally in public and private investments in brownfields projects.

Worcester and the Southern Windsor County (Vermont) Regional Planning Commission are the two recipients in New England selected for Brownfields Revolving Loan Fund grants. EPA Administrator Whitman today announced a total of $21.5 million to 21 recipients nationwide. To date, EPA has awarded 143 Brownfields Revolving Loan Fund grants to 39 states and the District of Columbia totaling almost $91 million.