This was the seventh time the city had applied for a grant from the highly competitive brownfield program, said William Lutz, Piqua Development Program manager.
“For our community to be one of only three communities in the entire state to receive this funding demonstrates our long term commitment to deal with brownfield development,” Lutz said.
A brownfield is an abandoned commercial or industrial property, often with environmental contamination.
Lutz said the grant would be used to pay for environmental studies of brownfields, which can be any size and previously occupied by uses such as gas stations or an old factory. The program is for two years with hopes the city can get the assessments started in the fall, he said. The city first has to work out an agreement for city project funding with the U.S. EPA.
“We have really concentrated over the past five years on our two biggest brownfields, which are the old power plant on South Main Street and the hospital site on Park Avenue. There are other sites we are going to look at and we will be working with property owners to gain access to properties to complete these studies,” Lutz said.
The city also has received grants for the following projects:
• Clean Ohio Assistance Fund and Clean Ohio Revitalization Fund to study and demolish the former hospital. The project nears completion.
• Clean Ohio Assistance and Clean Ohio Revitalization grant to study and demolish the rear of the former power plant site. Consultants are working on project specifications with demolition projected in late summer or early fall.
• State of Ohio Brownfield Action Planning grant to review the riverfront south of downtown and come up with redevelopment ideas for this area along the Great Miami River.
• Center for Disease Control $148,000 grant to look at brownfield redevelopment coupled with promoting healthy lifestyles. Experts in finance, real estate and public health among other disciplines will draw up strategies to redevelop the area between Spring Street and the river.
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