Governor M. Jodi Rell today announced that the state is receiving more than $3.1 million in federal funding to help assess, clean up and re-use “brownfields” – contaminated and often long-abandoned properties that can be remediated and turned into productive sites for economic development or other public uses.
The $3,124,500 in grants from the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency to nine projects in eight Connecticut cities and towns are part of more than $16 million in brownfields grants distributed to New England communities. The grant money will assist efforts to reclaim sites such as old textile mills, sites containing hazardous substances and other abandoned industrial and commercial properties.
“These federal funds are welcome additions to my Administration’s efforts to make the most of brownfields,” Governor Rell said. “These properties are almost always located where new development, new jobs, new tax dollars and new vitality are needed most. And, by reusing brownfields instead of previously untouched property, we are preserving open space and maintaining the natural character of the rest of our state.
“The national economy is showing the first faint signs of recovery – but we still have a long way to go,” the Governor said. “These grants will help us move projects along all across Connecticut. Recycling these sites is sound policy for the entire state – and that’s why it’s a key component of my responsible growth agenda.”
The grants were awarded to:
East Hampton, $200,000 (community wide assessment)
Griswold, $200,000 (clean-up at former Triangle Plastic Wire and Cable Co.)
Hartford, $124,500 (clean-up at Ramon Qurious Park)
Middletown, $200,000 (clean-up at Remington Rand Complex)
New Haven, $200,000 (clean-up at 10 Wall Street site)
New Haven, $1 million (community wide revolving loan fund)
Preston Redevelopment Agency, $600,000 (three clean-up grants for work at the former Norwich State Hospital property)
Shelton, $200,000 (clean-up at Former Cel-lastik Parcel)
Waterbury Development Corp., $400,000 (community-wide assessment
In all, New England received 58 of the 304 grants issued nationally.
Contact: Rich Harris, 860-524-7313, rich.harris@ct.gov