City To Receive Brownfield Assessment Grants: Mayor

From The City of Woonsocket: Mayor Lisa Baldelli-Hunt is pleased to announce that the City of Woonsocket has received (2) Targeted Brownfield Assessment grants for the Seville Dye Company on First Avenue and the vacant properties located at 92 and 176 Sunnyside Avenue.

The Mayor noted that, “This funding starts the first steps for the comprehensive redevelopment of these properties. This project allows for the City working in partnership with the Rhode Island Department of Environmental Management (RIDEM) to inventory, plan, conduct environmental assessments and engage the community.” Redevelopment of brownfields — which are vestiges of Rhode Island’s industrial heritage and number in the thousands across the state — may be complicated by the presence or potential presence of environmental contamination. DEM’s Targeted brownfields Assessment (TBA) Program provides funding to municipalities and non-profits to help evaluate the contamination at brownfield sites and provide an estimate of the costs associated with the future remediation. “The abandoned, former Seville Dye property makes for an ideal brownfields project and we are pleased to carry out the environmental site assessment on behalf of the City of Woonsocket,” said Janet Coit, Director of the Rhode Island Department of Environmental Management. “We understand how important it is for the City to transform this blighted industrial site into a cleaner, productive property that provides long-term economic and environmental benefits for the community, and look forward to working collaboratively with Mayor Baldelli-Hunt and the City on this important project.” Funding for DEM’s TBA program is provided through the US Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA) Brownfields Program; the program targets communities that are economically disadvantaged and provides funding and assistance to transform contaminated sites into assets that can generate jobs and spur economic growth.

In addition to the Browndfield grants announced today, the City has been the beneficiary of four other recent grants from RIDEM. The Mayor expressed her deep appreciation to Governor Gina Raimondo for the State’s favorable consideration of the City’s grant applications and also recognized the entire RIDEM Department under the direction of Janet Coit for all of their help and technical assistance.

The Mayor recognized the work of former Planning Director N. David Bouley and current Planning Director Joel Mathews and their staff for this success. Most importantly the Mayor noted that the addition of Bianca Policastro of the Policastro Group to the City’s grant writing arsenal had greatly enhanced the City’s grant writing abilities. The Mayor recognized and praised the efforts and grant writing expertise of Bianca Policastro who has assisted the City in the preparation of these and other grant applications in recent weeks. The Mayor looks forward to maximizing the City’s continued grant potential in the future.

Image Via The City of Woonsocket