Orange County has been awarded $400,000 as part of an overall $7 million grant Florida will receive, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) announced.
The grants, awarded to 10 communities in Florida, are for the assessment and cleanup of brownfields properties, including abandoned gas stations, old textile mills, closed smelters, and other abandoned industrial and commercial properties. Brownfields are sites where expansion, redevelopment, or reuse may be complicated by the presence or potential presence of a hazardous substance, pollutant or contaminant.
The communities in Florida receiving Brownfields assessment, revolving loan fund, and cleanup grants include:
· Central Florida Regional Planning Council ($1 million community-wide revolving loan fund grant)
· Daytona Beach, FL ($200,000 cleanup grant for Palmetto Avenue and Wall Street Parking Lot site)
· Orange County, FL ($400,000 community-wide assessment grant)
· Pasco County, FL ($1 million assessment grant for Assessment Coalition)
· Plant City Community Redevelopment Agency, FL ($200,000 cleanup grant for Gro Mor Property, $200,000 cleanup grant for Hydraulic Hose/JWH-Telco Property and a $200,000 cleanup grant for Stock Lumber Property)
· Sarasota/Manatee Metropolitan Planning Organization, FL ($1 million assessment grant for Assessment Coalition)
· Tallahassee, FL ($1 million community-wide revolving loan fund grant)
· Treasure Coast Regional Planning Council, FL ($1 million assessment grant for Assessment Coalition)
· Wauchula, FL ($400,000 community-wide assessment grant)
· West Florida Regional Planning Council ($400,000 community-wide assessment grant and $215,000 in supplemental revolving loan funds)
