MDEQ Brownfield Newsletter 01-2011

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BROWNFIELD TIP…………..…….1 BROWNFIELD REDEVELOPMENT IN OXFORD……….….2

VOLUME 1

January Summer 2011 2008

Brownfield Redevelopment

SUSTAINABLE REUSE OF BROWNFIELD PROPERTIES

Brownfield Tip: Field a Strong Brownfield Team with Leadership from the Top Brownfield success is about people. Localities most successful in brownfield revitalization have set up brownfield teams that include prominent local leaders, a brownfield staff champion, and a cross-sector team of public and private supporters. The use of a well rounded local government team for brownfields can help the prospective end-users of these sites overcome the tough barriers to brownfield redevelopment. A local brownfield team can also bring together the cross-disciplinary skills necessary to address these complex environmental, economic and social challenges.

In addition, the establishment of the right team helps ensure that the community's brownfield initiatives are sustained beyond the expiration of EPA brownfield grant funding or other startup funding that launched these programs. A local brownfield team should include the following: 

Leadership from Top Local Officials

Whether from the Mayor, City Council, City Manager, County Supervisor or a top agency official, the nation's top brownfield programs all receive leadership from high-ranking local officials, by gaining community support, developing the partnerships, and obtaining the resources needed for a successful program.

They also bring the private sector to the table, lobby for funding, testify in Congress, and speak at conferences to demonstrate their leadership.

For example:  Chicago Mayor Richard Daley has committed more than $70 million to establish an aggressive local program that acquires and prepares brownfield properties for commercial and industrial redevelopment.  Tom Suozzi, the former Mayor of Glen Cove, New York who was elected as County Executive for Nassau County, made the revitalization of the brownfields on Glen Cove's waterfront his top community priority. He is now implementing an ambitious brownfield program for the entire County.  Mayor Dan Malloy of Stamford, Connecticut has made the revitalization of his City's Mill River Corridor his top economic development priority. By becoming a national spokesman on brownfields, Mayor Malloy has leveraged more than $50 million in state and federal funding for land acquisition, transportation, affordable housing, greenway development, and other priorities that are components of his revitalization plans.

 Interagency Team Most successful brownfield programs have established local interagency teams, which serve several valuable functions. Different agencies bring the different skills and areas of expertise required for revitalization. By having all of the relevant agencies involved, the locality can create greater predictability in the development process and thereby enhance its credibility with the private sector.

Moreover, the participation of multiple agencies provides a variety of entry points for property owners and developers interested in redeveloping brownfields. There are a number of different models for interagency teams, but virtually all have participation from at least the Mayor's office and the economic development, environmental, planning, finance, and legal departments. Many also include the local parks, public works, public health, housing, buildings and transportation departments. A good start would be to involve the State Brownfield Coordinator.

Another good addition would be your local Economic/Community Development Organization. Between the two of them, you be able to draw from their expertise to determine a cost-effective approach to putting a site back into productive use while still being protective of human health and the environment.

For more information, contact: Jere “Trey” Hess Brownfield Coordinator (601) 961-5654 (601) 961- 5300 (Fax) http://www.brownfields.ms

Brownfield Redevelopment in Oxford In November, the 69-acre Whirlpool brownfield site in Oxford, MS was sold to the University of Mississippi for $3.4 million. To ensure the property is safe as well as marketable, Whirlpool entered into a Brownfield Agreement with the Mississippi Commission on Environmental Quality (MCEQ) during its October, 2010 meeting to clean up an area in the defunct plant that showed the presence of hydraulic fluid, which has contaminated a small, 500 square foot area. MCEQ, during the October Meeting, also approved the sale of the site to the University of Mississippi.

The Mississippi Attorney General’s Office approved the university’s purchase, provided Whirlpool agreed to pay for any problems caused by hydraulic fluid contamination. The state’s College Board has also approved the deal. Whirlpool first announced the Oxford plant’s closure in July 2008 and that production of its built-in cooking appliances would transition to the

Cleveland, TN facility. The Mississippi site closed in March 2009.

Regional news outlets quoting Larry Sparks, vice chancellor for finance and administration at the university, reported the school doesn’t have immediate plans for the site but the long-term vision for the manufacturing facility is another matter. “I’d say the plans are more long term than short term,” Sparks told NEMS360.com, a division of Journal Inc. “It’s (site) contiguous with land we already own and it already has utilities on the site as well as other infrastructure.”

Sparks suggested some of the site’s older buildings will probably be demolished but that newer structures will be used for storage with the intent of freeing up academic space on the existing campus. “We’ll start using the new buildings for storage and other purposes,” he told the Journal Inc. news site. “That will free up other space on the main campus for our academic mission.”

Mississippi Department of Environmental Quality Office of Pollution Control Groundwater Assessment and Remediation Division P.O. Box 2261 515 E. Amite Street Jackson, MS 39225

Max Hipp, director of the OxfordLafayette County Chamber of Commerce, reported several companies looked at the building over the past 18 months, but the college settled the deal. Jill Saletta, director of external communications for Whirlpool Corp. headquartered in Benton Harbor, Mich., said the university has served as an integral member of the Task Force to review ownership and future use options for the facility. “The university was part of the original Task Force that was assembled to look at all options for the parcel,” Saletta said. “That Task Force included state, local and utility economic development officials.” Saletta acknowledged the University of Mississippi was a logical buyer because of the site’s location, but that many directions were considered. “While everyone will say the proximity to the university made it a natural buyer for the long term, the Task Force looked at a multitude of options including reuse, manufacturing and redevelopment,” the Whirlpool

Whirlpool Corp. – Oxford, MS

spokeswoman said. “Over time, it became clear the long-term highest and best use was associated with the land being utilized by the University of Mississippi.”