Cleaner Commonwealth Funds Now Available
Offering cleanup grants for brownfield properties
FRANKFORT, Ky. (Feb 2, 2015) – The Kentucky Brownfield Redevelopment Program in the Department for Environmental Protection (DEP) announces the availability of cleanup grants through the Cleaner Commonwealth Fund (CCF).
The CCF is a grant-and-loan fund established with an $850,000 U.S. Environmental Protection Agency Brownfield Revolving Loan Fund Grant. The program is releasing $182,000 to provide money for brownfield cleanup projects in Kentucky.
Brownfields are properties that are abandoned or underutilized due to real or perceived environmental contamination. They can include old factories, former gas stations, mine-scarred lands and abandoned dry cleaning establishments. There are an estimated 450,000 abandoned and contaminated waste sites in the country.
“Kentucky communities receiving cleanup grants use the funds for the revitalization of underdeveloped areas, which stimulates economic development, protects the environment and improves the lives of the citizens in those communities,” said Larry Taylor, director of the Division of Compliance Assistance, where the Kentucky Brownfield Redevelopment Program is housed.
In this round of grants, eligible entities including local governments, nonprofits and quasi-governmental agencies, can apply for up to $50,000 for an eligible hazardous waste or petroleum contamination cleanup project. For a site to be eligible, the applicant must have performed All Appropriate Inquiries (Phase I Assessment) within the six-month period prior to the purchase of the property and met bona fide prospective purchaser guidelines. There are exceptions for some cases of involuntary acquisition. A Phase II Assessment must also be complete at the time of application. More eligibility guidelines can be found in the request-for-proposal document and our frequently asked questions.
“This fund offers assistance to businesses, local governments and nonprofits to clean up blighted properties and put them back into productive reuse,” said Herb Petitjean, brownfield coordinator.
Proposals must be postmarked by March 31, 2015. Application documents and supporting materials can be found on the Kentucky Brownfield Redevelopment Program website at dca.ky.gov/brownfields/Pages/Cleanercommonwealthfund.aspx. Funding announcements will be made in April, and projects will start in July 2015.
The loan program, which will be open to public, private and nonprofit entities, will be launched in summer 2015. If you have any questions, please contact Herb Petitjean or Amanda LeFevre at 800-926-8111.