Northwest Georgia communities are receiving $6 million in federal funding aimed at cleaning up contaminated properties and preparing sites for future redevelopment.
U.S. Rep. Clay Fuller joined EPA Region 4 Administrator Kevin McOmber and state and local officials Friday, Sept. 18, at the Chickamauga Civic Center to highlight the Environmental Protection Agency’s Brownfields funding for projects across the region.
The largest award is going to the City of Chickamauga, which will receive $4 million to clean up the former Crystal Springs Print Works property at Long Street and West 10th Avenue. The 17-acre property operated as a textile mill from 1909 until 2013 and has remained vacant following demolition of buildings at the site.
According to the EPA, the property is contaminated with volatile organic compounds, metals, PCBs and other inorganic contaminants. The grant will fund cleanup work and community engagement activities as Chickamauga works toward returning the property to productive use.
The Northwest Georgia Regional Commission will receive $1.5 million through a Coalition Assessment Grant. The funding will support environmental assessments of properties with potential for redevelopment, including work benefiting Cedartown, Dalton and Summerville. EPA’s grant announcement says the funding is expected to support 26 Phase I and 16 Phase II environmental site assessments.
Another $500,000 is going to the Rome-Floyd County Development Authority. That funding will be used to expand the area’s inventory of brownfield properties and conduct environmental assessments of prospective sites.
Fuller said the funding is part of an effort to help Northwest Georgia communities revitalize properties and encourage economic development.
“Since taking office, I’ve worked closely with municipalities across Georgia’s 14th District to support efforts to revitalize our communities and promote economic growth,” Fuller said. “I am thrilled to join EPA and our local leaders in announcing $6 million in federal brownfields funding that will help clean up contaminated properties, prepare for redevelopment, and return them to productive use for the communities they serve.”
McOmber said brownfield projects can have benefits beyond environmental cleanup, including supporting economic development and creating opportunities to put underused properties back into service.
EPA’s Brownfields Program provides funding to assess, clean up and redevelop properties where the presence or potential presence of hazardous substances, pollutants or contaminants may complicate redevelopment. The program has provided more than $3 billion in grant funding since it began in 1995.