by Steve Dwyer

Interim-use brownfields aren’t applicable for every development schema. If you can capitalize on it though, project stakeholders should take full advantage—particularly in densely populated urban settings where individuals don’t have to travel far to take advantage of the interim-use site.

A recent interim-use scenario in the Northeast footprint of BCONE caught our attention: The Hoboken, N.J. Northwest Resiliency Park project. The long-term plan envisions a one-two punch of addressing flooding issues in the northwestern area of Hoboken with a stormwater retention plan as well as providing residents with a green recreational component. The properties are currently undergoing focused Remedial Action activities by BASF, the former property owner. Following the completion of the remedial action, the property was deemed safe for the community’s use by North Brunswick, New Jersey’s Excel Environmental Resources Inc.’s Licensed Site Remediation Professional (LSRP).

The short-term planning process is underway to create a temporary four-acre “pop-up” park so that the Hoboken community can start enjoying the benefits of the green space this summer. The goal of the park is to provide a fun and safe recreational area for the enjoyment of the Hoboken community for the next two to three years while the long-term plan proceeds.

The long-term Hoboken redevelopment, meantime, solves two issues within one ambitious lens: Create open space in a dense urban footprint and build green stormwater infrastructure and subsurface detention to reduce stormwater runoff in the city—long as bugaboo in this city.

Interim-use strategies are helping to breathe life into this project—a concept that has great upside if applicable and if properly executed by its stakeholders. 

by Joseph S. Siegel, Sun Chronicle (MA)

The town has been given a $100,000 brownfields redevelopment grant from the state to assess an industrial mill site off Maple Avenue.

The 105,000-square-foot building which had housed the Attleboro Dyeworks and Finishing Company caught fire in May 2012.

The town hopes to redevelop the property into mixed-income housing and retail space that would provide access to the Ten Mile River.

…

For the entire article, see 

http://www.thesunchronicle.com/communities/seekonk-gets-grants-for-contaminated-site/article_9dc42ee6-25ac-5fdc-9224-7fd1506d0216.html

by Carl MacGowan, Long Island Newsday (NY)

The Metropolitan Transportation Authority must file a new plan to contain or remove contaminated soil from a former Yaphank rail yard because of a change in the state’s hazardous waste site cleanup program, a spokesman for the state Department of Environmental Conservation said.

A previous remediation plan — in which the soil would be left in place and covered with an asphalt and concrete cap, proposed by the MTA in 2012 — is no longer valid because it was filed under the DEC’s Voluntary Cleanup Program, which is being phased out, DEC spokesman Sean Mahar said.

…

For the entire article, see
http://www.newsday.com/long-island/towns/state-mta-must-file-new-cleanup-plan-at-yaphank-site-1.13902885

by Daniel Axelrod, Middletown Times Herald-Record (NY)

The owner of the iconic former Grossinger’s Resort is seeking state help to clean soil contamination for what could become step one in building a 300-room hotel and 500 housing units.

In March, representatives of Sullivan Resorts, LLC, a subsidiary of owner Louis Cappelli’s Valhalla-based Cappelli Enterprises, applied for the state Department of Environmental Conservation to designate the former resort site a brownfield and offer clean-up assistance. The state may soon render a decision on the Grossinger’s site, said property manager Henry Zabatta.

Over the next month, Cappelli hopes state officials will approve brownfield status and help pay to remove contamination his environmental consultants say came from old underground fuel tanks, dry-cleaning chemicals and other resort-related sources, Zabatta said.

…

For the entire article, see
http://www.recordonline.com/news/20170801/grossingers-owner-seeks-state-aid?start=17

by Tim Louis MacalusoRochester City Newspaper (NY)

Up until about the 1950's, the Bull's Head area was a thriving part of the southwest section of the city. Though it's still remembered fondly by many people, particularly in Rochester's African-American community, right now Bull's Head is scarred by vacant lots and abandoned buildings. It's often better known for the free public health clinic on West Main Street than for its large older homes and historic sites.

But more than 100 people joined Mayor Lovely Warren and other city officials at St. Mary's Campus recently for a meeting about the city's plans to try to revitalize Bull's Head. Warren, who opened the meeting, thanked residents and business owners for "sticking with the neighborhood." The road to improving the area has been a long one, she said; planning has been underway for about a decade.
…

For the entire article, see
https://www.rochestercitynewspaper.com/rochester/bringing-back-bulls-head/Content?oid=3947906

More from the 2017 NSCW.  If you missed it, enjoy the information.  If you were there, enjoy the refresh.

Like many programs focusing on environmental issues, brownfields are facing an uncertain future. Changes in Washington are signaling potential disruptions in the regulatory landscape and funding for programs that support redevelopment.  These evolving diverse regulatory and budgetary challenges continue at a fast pace, and tomorrow's issues are likely to be different than today’s.

When we look to the future of brownfields, transactional and planning-driven redevelopment will likely influence the amount of money going to projects. The allocation of the federal budget will continue to shift, and it is essential for brownfield redevelopment practitioners to track and integrate into their planning, the potential loss of federal and as well as state and local funding opportunities. 

The integration of sustainable infrastructure and resilient, adaptable design into brownfield projects is critical to preparing our communities to address the impact of extreme weather, flooding, or sea level rise. Support from the federal government for infrastructure, transportation, and other sectors will likely diminish, and local and state governments need to focus their efforts here to address on-the-ground realities. Even considering the unforeseeable outcomes resulting from federal changes, the strength of our communities will rely heavily on local action. Regardless of the constant evolution of programs or funding, brownfield redevelopment will continue to be a crucial component of resilient communities.

BCONE thanks Andrew Welch of CCLR for preparing this summary, and thanks Andrea Poinsett of GEI Consultants for editorial services.

Mid-Hudson News (NY)

State environmental officials Thursday announced the completion of a brownfield cleanup at a Kingston industrial site, located at a blighted area along the Rondout Creek waterfront. The work took just over a year and over 30,000 man-hours to finish.

Formerly a manufactured gas production facility, the property, located on Front Street behind the old Millen’s scrapyard, currently serves as a gas regulator facility for the utility. 

Christopher Capone, CFO of Central Hudson, which owns the site, said the project was very important, both to his company, and also the surrounding community.

…

For the entire article, see
http://www.midhudsonnews.com/News/2017/July/28/King_waterfront_remed-28Jul17.html

by Jonathan D. Epstein, Buffalo News (NY)

Rocco Termini hopes the directors of the Erie County Industrial Development Agency like beer. A lot.

Termini is seeking help from the ECIDA to support his conversion of an old industrial building on Chandler Street into the new home of Thin Man Brewery and a business incubator.

The developer, through his Signature Development Buffalo LLC, has applied for sales and mortgage recording tax breaks for the $4.695 million project, in which he would add 10,000 square feet to the 40,000-square-foot building at 166 Chandler St.

…

The century-old building suffered a fire in 2001 and has been vacant more than 10 years, according to Termini's application. It's "in very bad condition" and is considered an "environmental hazard" because of the fire and prior uses of the building.

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For the entire article, see
http://buffalonews.com/2017/07/28/termini-wants-tax-breaks-thin-man-brewery-project/

by Judi Currie, Foster's Daily Democrat (NH)

The city has chosen Credere Associates of Westbrook, Maine, to lead the cleanup effort at Breton’s Cleaners.

In March the City Council authorized Belmore to sign an agreement with the state Department of Environmental Services to accept $178,000 from the state Brownfields Revolving Loan Fund.

Despite not receiving a $200,000 EPA Brownfields grant in the 2016 round of funding, the council opted to move forward with a plan to clean up the former site and demolish the building.

…

For the entire article, see
http://www.fosters.com/news/20170724/credere-to-lead-clean-up

by Cyrus Moulton, Worcester Telegram (MA)

The juxtaposition on Grand Street in Main South is stark: A renovated, historic factory building with new windows looking into 94 affordable apartments is surrounded by an abandoned, dilapidated conglomeration of industrial buildings and vacant lots.

“Hopefully it will stimulate other work in the area,” said Steve Teasdale, executive director of the Main South Community Development Corp., of the renovated factory.
…
The factories of Central Massachusetts’ industrial age may have largely faded into the past or been repurposed for new uses. But in many cases, a legacy of that age remains: a degraded environment.
…
For the entire article, see
http://www.telegram.com/news/20170729/making-it-in-central-mass-restoring-regions-environment-in-wake-of-industrial-age