The Environmental Protection Agency Region 7 recently awarded Schuyler Community Development a $500,000 Brownfields Assessment Grant. The grant was presented during a ceremony at the former municipal power plant brownfield site.
This is the first time Schuyler Community Development has received funding through EPA’s Brownfields Multipurpose, Assessment, and Cleanup (MCA) Grants program. These funds are designed to transform polluted, vacant, and abandoned properties into valuable community assets, creating jobs and driving economic revitalization.
The grant will support several key initiatives, including multiple Phase I and Phase II environmental site assessments, identifying and prioritizing additional sites, developing four cleanup plans, conducting three visioning sessions, preparing three site reuse assessments, and creating one revitalization plan. Community engagement activities will also be part of the process.
Meghan McCollister, Regional Director of EPA Region 7 presented the check to Brian Bywater, Schuyler’s Community Housing Specialist and Economic Development Coordinator.
McCollister expressed the EPA’s excitement, stating, “Investing in community to make them healthier, cleaner, and more economically competitive is a top priority at EPA and it’s what the Brownfields Program is all about. With this grant Schuyler Community Development can take another step toward turning forgotten spaces into community assets, all while creating jobs and spearing economic growth for this community.”
The Brownfields program is currently experiencing unprecedented investment, with $1.5 billion allocated for projects across the United States, marking the largest investments in Brownfields infrastructure in the nation’s history
Bywater celebrated the occasion, saying, “It is a great day in Schuyler!”
He emphasized that the grant is a crucial step towards improving the look and feel of Schuyler, particularly in Downtown Revitalization, and hopes to continue partnering with the EPA for future cleanup efforts.
For more information on the Environmental Protection Agency Region 7, visit EPA Region 7 (Midwest) | US EPA.