Unlocking Potential: The Crucial Role of Cleanup Grants for Historically Contaminated Properties

Revitalizing properties with an industrial past can feel daunting. Historical contamination often poses significant hurdles for redevelopment, with the polluter not identified or required to conduct any cleanup and few avenues for funding to support the cleanup. However, cleanup grants offer a tool to turn these sites into valuable community assets.

Take, for example, a property in St. Paul with a history dating back to the late 19th century. First used for industrial purposes in the 1920s, as home to the St. Paul Casket Company, over the decades, the property changed hands multiple times, hosting various businesses, including a drug store warehouse, a design company, and even a fluorescent light ballast recycling business.

These various uses, across decades of changing industrial practices and environmental regulation, left the property in a difficult state. Polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs), volatile organic compounds (VOCs), and other hazardous substances were found in the soil and building materials. 

Developer J.B. Vang, however, saw the potential to turn the site into multi-family residential units, if it could determine the extent of the contamination and mitigate it to current standards. Already just blocks from the Minnesota State Capitol and close to Interstate 94, light rail connections nearby made it ideal for families seeking convenient access to both Minneapolis and St. Paul.

J.B. Vang enlisted the help of GZA to conduct thorough environmental assessments. The findings were expected, if daunting: high levels of VOCs, PAHs, PCBs, and metals in the soil, along with trichloroethene in soil vapor.

To better determine the scope, GZA prepared a competitive investigation grant request, and the City of St. Paul secured $49,200 from the Metropolitan Council (MetCouncil) Tax Base Revitalization Account (TBRA) to further investigate the extent of the contamination. The funding was used to develop a more complete picture of the site to reduce any future risks.

The additional investigations revealed even more contamination, including arsenic and additional PCB-impacted concrete. Armed with this information, GZA  and the City of St. Paul successfully applied for a cleanup grant of $174,600 from the MetCouncil TBRA. These funds went to the managing of contaminated soil and installing a vapor mitigation system to ensure the safety of future residents.
Thanks to the cleanup grants, the property underwent a remarkable transformation. After the management of contaminated concrete in accordance with EPA guidelines, the site was redeveloped into 55 affordable apartment units. What was once a contaminated industrial site is now a thriving residential community, providing much-needed housing and revitalizing the neighborhood.

Without cleanup grants, many properties would remain underutilized, their potential locked away by the burden of contamination. Cleanup grants not only facilitate the safe redevelopment of these sites but also contribute to the economic and social revitalization of communities.