Title
Authorization To Apply for, Accept, Disburse Funds and Enter into Agreements For U.S. Environmental Protection Agency Brownfields Assessment Coalition Grant for Rio Reimagined Project (Ordinance S-46153)
Description
Request approval for the City Manager, or his designee, for the City of Phoenix Office of Environmental Programs (OEP) to submit a grant application to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) for a $600,000 Brownfields Assessment Coalition grant for the Rio Reimagined Project and, if awarded, to execute all contracts and Memorandums of Agreement (MOA) necessary to accept and disburse the grant funds. Further request authorization for the City Treasurer to accept, and for the City Controller to disburse, grant funds in accordance with the terms of the aforementioned grant and agreement.
Report
Summary
The EPA Brownfields program provides grants to assess, safely clean up and sustainably reuse contaminated properties. The goal of the program is to put underused and abandoned properties with contamination or the perception of contamination back into productive use. This assessment grant would provide $600,000 in funding for environmental assessments on property acquisitions for the Rio Reimagined/Rio Salado Project. For many years, the City of Phoenix has worked with partners to invest in revitalizing the Rio Salado, and the region is reengaged to transform over 45 miles of the river stretching from the Salt River Pima Maricopa Indian Community to the east to the City of Buckeye to the west. Efforts to move the project forward continue at the federal level. Arizona State University (ASU) has helped to corral various jurisdictions and projects along the Rio Salado by developing a working group and framework for moving the project forward.
The opportunity to apply for brownfields funding was brought to the attention of the Rio Salado Working Group in June 2019 with additional education and resources presented in a Rio Reimagined Brownfields Workshop in August conducted by OEP, EPA, Arizona Department of Environmental Quality, developers, consultants, and the Center for Creative Land Recycling. As a result of the outreach, the cities of Avondale, Buckeye and Tempe elected to join the Coalition with Phoenix. Other cities and tribal communities located within the Rio Reimagined Project area were also invited; however, declined to participate at this time. The OEP Brownfields Land Recycling Program will serve as the Lead Applicant for the coalition. The OEP has more than 20 years of experience in brownfields redevelopment and was one of the first cities to receive an EPA brownfields grant when the program was initiated in the 1990s. OEP has successfully managed several EPA assessment, land use planning, and environmental workforce development grants. As such, the Coalition nominated and OEP accepted the role of Lead Applicant, responsible for overall grant management. The MOA will detail the roles, responsibilities, authority, and details of disbursement of the grant funds and must be completed prior to award.
Within the City of Phoenix project boundaries there are properties that are challenged with environmental conditions that prohibit redevelopment and these grant funds will assist in determining the extent of environmental challenges. OEP informed the Community and Economic Development Department of this grant opportunity and they are supportive of applying for these funds. These grant funds can be used to fund environmental site assessments to define the actual environmental conditions, if any, at underutilized sites. This allows potential buyers to make informed decisions about redevelopment opportunities on these sites and encourages redevelopment of properties that may otherwise remain unused.
The assessments include Phase I Environmental Site Assessments (ESA), which are site investigations and searches of historical records and current databases for indicators of potential environmental contamination, and Phase II ESAs, which usually involve conducting soil, soil vapor, or groundwater testing to investigate any environmental concerns identified during the Phase I ESA. These environmental assessments must be conducted prior to property purchase to quality for liability protections. Often, purchasers of property, especially small business owners, are unable to cover the costs of environmental investigations.
The grant application deadline is Dec. 3, 2019. Award of funds is anticipated in Spring 2020, with funding available in October 2020.
Contract Term
The grant and any resulting contracts or MOAs are for three years.
Financial Impact
No match or General Fund monies are required for this grant.
Location
Council District(s): 6, 7, 8
Department
Responsible Department
This item is submitted by Deputy City Manager Karen Peters and the Office of Environmental Programs.