NEW Funding Opportunity for Brownfields!

Attention Community Brownfield Leaders and Change-makers!

EPA’s NEW Community Change Grants program is a groundbreaking funding opportunity that aims to catalyze transformative change in your community. Over $2 billion dollars in Inflation Reduction Act (IRA) funding is available to support community-driven projects that build capacity for communities to tackle environmental and climate justice challenges, strengthen their climate resilience, and advance clean energy. What’s more, the funding opportunity also provides new possibilities for funding additional aspects of brownfields projects!

The solicitation is open now, and will close November 21, 2024. EPA is accepting applications on a rolling basis. Read the announcement for the Notice of Funding Opportunity here. Community Change Grants are available for Community-Based Non-Profit Organizations (CBO), Local Government (in partnership with a CBO), Federally Recognized Tribe (in partnership with a CBO), and Institutions of Higher Education (in partnership with a CBO).

Community Change Grant Highlights:

Track I: aims to support around 150 large-scale, community-driven investment projects, offering grant awards ranging from $10 million to $20 million. This track emphasizes public participation, inventory management, groundwork, and strategic planning. In the realm of brownfields, Track I initiatives might involve the development of brownfields inventory work and inclusive planning processes to foster green space, or the identification of brownfield sites through comprehensive inventory efforts.

Track II: aims to fund approximately 20 engagement projects, with grant awards ranging from $1 million to $3 million. Projects under Track II must not exceed a duration of three years. This track focuses on specific projects such as enhancing climate resilience, promoting increased weatherization of buildings, or implementing community-wide solar panel installations.

Brownfield Specific Examples May Include:

  • Build and / or upgrade existing structures and sites to improve community use while reducing GHG emissions and / or improving climate resilience.  
  • Implement greening efforts (tree-planting, park construction or renovations, community garden developments, etc.) that mitigate GHG emissions and / or improve climate resilience.  
  • Install low or zero emission energy infrastructure such as solar and storage.  
  • Conduct deconstruction and green demolition activities to support adaptive reuse or new construction. Applicants can refer to EPA’s Climate Smart Brownfields Manual for information about green demolition activities. 
  • Acquire land to enable a brownfield redevelopment that has emissions mitigation and / or climate resilience benefits. 

Need help taking advantage of this opportunity? 

Technical assistance (TA) is also available for eligible entities for all stages of the Community Change Grants process. This may include support for application preparation, capacity building, project planning, and beyond. Learn more about TA for Community Change Grants Here.

The Community Change Grants Program is about empowering communities to revitalize brownfields, strengthen climate resilience, and propel clean energy and other climate initiatives forward. This funding opportunity is a game-changer for communities ready to roll up their sleeves and drive meaningful change. More than just funding; it’s a platform for empowerment, collaboration, and innovation. Together, let’s transform brownfields into vibrant hubs of sustainability, resilience, and equity.For more information and to apply for the grant, visit EPA’s Community Change Grants Program page, and apply here by November 21, 2024!

Announcing the 2024 Brownfields Job Training Grants!

Calling all brownfields practitioners! The solicitation EPA-I-OLEM-OBLR-23-08 for a Brownfields JT grant is open and will close August 2, 2023!   EPA’s Brownfields JT grants are available for nonprofit organizations, Indian Tribes, Redevelopment agencies, Regional Councils, public and nonprofit colleges, and State & local governments. The grant is a 5-year workforce development grant to create job training and certification in environmental fields for unemployed/under employed individuals in communities impacted by brownfields. These green jobs reduce environmental contamination and build more sustainable futures for communities.

The EPA hosted an outreach webinar for prospective applicants on June 14, 2023. A recording of the webinar is now available here.

Here are some of EPA’s Brownfield JT grant highlights:

  • Grant can be funded up to $500,000 and can be used towards stipends to cover participation costs, child care and transportation costs for the trainees.
  • Grantees tailor their training to the job market needs of their area. 
  • Students develop skills needed to secure full-time sustainable employment in environmental remediation fields.
  • Funds may be used to offer trainings in:
  • Brownfields hazardous waste training 
  • “Green Remediation” technologies  
  • Green infrastructure and stormwater management  
  • Emergency planning, preparedness, and response training for emergencies leading to contamination on brownfield sites  
  • Enhanced environmental health and safety related to site remediation  
  • Energy efficiency and alternative energy technologies  
  • Training in assessment, inventory, analysis, and remediation of brownfield sites  
  • Use of techniques and methods for cleanup of hazardous substances  
  • Awareness training in Environmental Stewardship and Environmental Justice  
  • Training in climate change mitigation and adaption 
  • inspections of underground storage tanks
  • The only required training is OSHA 29 CFR 1910.120 40-hour HAZWOPER. 

To view previous successful applications, please visit Kansas State University Technical Assistance to Brownfields (KSU TAB) website and use the drop down menu under “Categories” to select proposals.  Another great resource for getting started with a Brownfields JT program is the Brownfields-toolbox provided by EPA’s job training technical assistance provider, Hazardous Materials Training and Research Institute (HMTRI) of the Eastern Iowa Community Colleges (EICC). Both KSU TAB and HMTRI can provide technical assistance during the solicitation period.
Don’t miss out on this great opportunity. Apply here by August 2nd, 2023!

From Obstacles to Opportunity

Stantec – When you picture what you love about your community, the elements that come to mind are likely the people who live there, the places you like to visit, and the features that make it unique […]

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Don’t Miss: KSU Grant-Writing Webinars

Are you thinking of applying for an EPA Brownfields Grant in 2024? Registration is now open for the KSU TAB Spring 2023 Brownfields Grant-Writing Training Webinar Series: It is Never too Early to Start. One registration gains access to all 6 webinars, access to the recorded webinars, and registrants are able to pick and choose which webinars  they would like to attend. If you are on the fence, webinars 1 and 2 will help you determine if an EPA grant is the right path for you. Find more information HERE and sign up today!

While the Colorado Brownfields Partnership typically provides assistance with resources provided through CDPHE, our partners over at the Kansas State University (KSU) Technical Assistance to Brownfields (TAB) program offer similar assistance for those accessing brownfields resources through EPA. Not sure who you need to contact or what resources are the best fit for your project? Feel free to reach out to the Colorado Brownfields Partnership and we will get you to the right place!

Housing and Brownfields

Affordable housing is a critical need in communities throughout Colorado. A variety of influences make affordable housing projects challenging to realize, such as construction and labor costs, an increase in second home and investment purchases, lack of housing supply, and of course land values. Brownfields can offer an opportunity for local governments or nonprofits to acquire lower cost land, while also accessing no-cost clean up resources to restore the land to a standard that is safe for residential development. With historic levels of funding for brownfields revitalization and a variety of funding and technical assistance opportunities available for affordable housing, this is a great time to explore the potential for accessing and combining these resources. Contact the Colorado Brownfields Partnership to learn more about how you can leverage brownfields and affordable housing resources to turn your brownfield site into an affordable housing asset.

Anvil Mountain affordable housing project on a former brownfield, Silverton, CO

Brownfields present a unique opportunity to address affordable housing challenges. Diverse  market challenges, including high land costs, make the delivery of affordable housing difficult.  Brownfields, which contain known or suspected environmental contaminants, can provide lower cost land. Of course, contaminants must be remediated to a high standard for any residential development at any price point. 

Municipalities and non-profit housing organizations are ideally positioned to leverage brownfields for affordable housing because they are eligible for free resources to get a site cleaned up and ready for new housing. Through the state brownfield program, the Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment (CDPHE) offers resources to assess environmental contamination and clean up the property. To learn about Phase I and II brownfields assessments, watch this short informational video on the Colorado Brownfields Partnership website. 

For-profit affordable housing developers can also benefit from financing and tools available for brownfields cleanup through the Voluntary Cleanup and Redevelopment Program (VCUP). VCUP enables access to a Revolving Loan Fund (RLF) and Tax Credits that offset cleanup costs. More information on VCUP can be viewed in this brief informational video on the Colorado Brownfields Partnership website. 

In some cases, private property owners may partner with municipalities or non-profit organizations on brownfields projects, harnessing resources available to each party. Affordable housing, which demonstrates a clear community benefit, is an ideal fit for brownfields funding as it creates a win-win-win scenario, where the municipality, property owner, and community all benefit. 

Once a brownfield is cleaned to the high standard required for residential reuse, it may be developed as affordable housing. Layering both brownfields and affordable housing resources can allow housing projects to get off the ground, and keep the units affordable. Recognizing a critical statewide need for more housing, Colorado state programs have expanded to support implementation and financing of affordable housing projects. To learn more about implementing affordable housing, check out the DOH Affordable Housing Toolkit.

Some of the new Department of Housing (DOH) funding requires that municipalities submit and finalize a baseline commitment with DOH by November 1, 2023. To prepare a baseline commitment, communities will need to identify their existing affordable housing stock. To learn more and submit your baseline commitment, visit: https://engagedola.org/prop-123 

Affordable housing is just one redevelopment scenario for a brownfield site. Yet with current levels of expanded brownfields and housing resources, paired with a critical need for housing across Colorado, there is great opportunity to turn your brownfield site into an affordable housing asset.