Brownfields Redevelopment

In urban planning, a brownfield is a former industrial or commercial site where environmental contamination hinders development. They exist in almost every community—there is probably one in your neighborhood—and state or federal resources can be used to facilitate assessment, cleanup and reuse. Drawing on a range of local and international experiences, this collection of essays focuses on cases where citizens, nonprofits, developers, cities, and state and federal agencies overcame challenges and mitigated risks to redevelop brownfields using leading-edge practices and simple innovations. The Covid-19 pandemic and mass civil unrest of 2020 underscores the importance of health and social justice considerations in future development initiatives.

Joaquin Jay Gonzalez III, Ph.D., is vice provost for global affairs as well as chair and Mayor George Christopher Professor of Public Administration at Golden Gate University. He founded GGU’s law enforcement and security program and is a San Francisco advocate for the safety and security of Filipino American kids and their families.

Tad McGalliard is the director of research and development at the International City/County Management Association in Washington, DC.

Ignacio Dayrit is the director of programs at the Center for Creative Land Recycling in Berkeley, California, and former redevelopment project manager for the City of Emeryville, California.

Edited by Joaquin Jay Gonzalez III, Tad McGalliard and Ignacio Dayrit

Format: softcover (7 x 10)
Pages: 373
Bibliographic Info: glossary, appendix, index
Copyright Date: 2021
pISBN: 978-1-4766-8360-7
eISBN: 978-1-4766-4302-1
Imprint: McFarland

Acknowledgments vii
Preface 1
Part I. Introduction
1. City Governments and Brownfields Development
Roger L. Kemp 5
2. Overview of EPA’s Brownfields Program
U.S. Environmental Protection Agency 9
3. Redeveloping Brownfields Good for Environment and Economy
David J. Robinson 15
4. Brownfields as a Mainstream Investment
Tad McGalliard 18
5. Innovations in Environmental Remediation
Tad McGalliard 23
6. How Donald Trump Became Counties’ Best Friend and Biggest Ally
Alan Greenblatt 30
Part II. Challenges, Risks, and Opportunities
• A. Challenges and Risks •
7. Groundbreaking Environmentalism
Stephen Goldsmith 37
8. Cleaning Up Toxic Sites Shouldn’t Clear Out the Neighbors
Lindsey Dillon 40
9. Don’t Give Up on Ambitious Green Architecture
Ian Mell 43
10. Pittsburgh Steps Up
Ron Littlefield 45
11. Toxic Lead Can Stay in the Body for Years After Exposure
Stuart Shalat 48
12. What Lies Beneath
James R. Elliott and Scott Frickel 51
13. Lead Poisoning’s Lifelong Toll Includes Lowering Social Mobility
Shefali Luthra 54
• B. Opportunities •
14. Financial and Nonfinancial Incentives
Tad McGalliard 57
15. Societal Disruptions Are Opportunities for Economic Development
Kim Briesemeister 67
16. Suburb City Managers Are Our First Responders
Tom Carroll and Brandi Blessett 72
17. Improving Water Quality Doesn’t Have to Wash Away Budgets
Ron Littlefield 77
18. Fighting Neighborhood Displacement, One Sewer Plant at a Time
Jayant Kairam 80
19. Setting the Stage for Leveraging Resources for Brownfields Revitalization
U.S. Environmental Protection Agency 82
20. Key Steps in Successful Leveraging Strategies for Brownfields Projects
U.S. Environmental Protection Agency 89
Part III. Practices and Innovations
• A. Federal •
21. Smart Growth
U.S. Environmental Protection Agency 105
22. Brownfields Federal Programs and Cases
U.S. Environmental Protection Agency 108
23. Brownfields Federal Tax Incentives and Credits
U.S. Environmental Protection Agency 120
24. Leveraging: Harbor Point in Stamford, Connecticut
U.S. Environmental Protection Agency 127
25. Leveraging: North Port Revitalization in Dubuque, Iowa
U.S. Environmental Protection Agency 131
26. Leveraging: Commerce Corridor in Ranson and Charles Town, West Virginia
U.S. Environmental Protection Agency 136
• B. State •
27. Florida Waste Cleanup Program
Florida Department of Environmental Protection 140
28. State of Ohio’s Brownfields Team
Ohio Environmental Protection Agency 143
29. Brownfield Redevelopment Guide
Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection 148
30. Oregon Brownfields Initiative
Oregon Department of Environmental Quality and Oregon Business Development Department 154
31. Brownfields in Alaska
Alaska Department of Environmental Conservation 159
32. Brownfields: Transform the Past, Build for the Future
New York State Department of Environmental Conservation 165
33. Louisiana Brownfields
Louisiana Department of Environmental Quality 171
34. Brownfields in Washington
Washington State Department of Ecology 176
35. North Dakota’s Brownfields Program
North Dakota Department of Environmental Quality 179
36. Tribal Brownfields and Response Programs
U.S. Environmental Protection Agency 182
• C. City •
37. The Factories of the Past Are Turning into the Data Centers of the Future
Graham Pickren 187
38. Cleaning Up House
Marcus Humberg, Martha Faust, Cheryl Ann Bishop
and Lyn Hikida 190
39. The Music City Miracle
Paula Middlebrooks 197
40. ICMA and CCLR’s Case Experiences
Clark Henry, Tad McGalliard and Ignacio Dayrit 201
• D. International •
41. The Reuse of U.S. Military Bases in the Philippines
Severo C. Madrona, Jr. 214
42. Under the Hood
Kevin C. Desouza, Michael Hunter and Tan Yigitcanlar 220
43. Brownfield Sites Are Opportunities in the Heart of Towns and Cities
Paul Nathanail 226
44. France Has a Unique Approach to Regenerating Inner Cities
Sebastien Darchen and Gwendal Simon 229
45. An Old German Steel Region Gets a Mindful Modern Makeover
Christa Reicher 232
46. Gasbrook Gasworks, Hamburg, Germany
Tad McGalliard 235
Part IV. Private and Nonprofit Environmental Professionals
47. How Do Brownfields Companies Innovate?
Mary Hashem and Stuart Miner 241
48. What Developers Really Want
Todd S. Davis 246
49. Retail Revolution and Retrofit
David S. Greensfelder 249
50. Brownfield Redevelopment and Environmental Insurance
Ed Morales 254
51. Land Recycling, Brownfields and the Center for Creative Land Recycling
Ignacio Dayrit 259
52. Municipal and Community Collaboration for Effective
Brownfields Redevelopment
Environmental Law Institute 265
53. Working with the Private Sector to Redevelop Brownfields
Environmental Law Institute 270
54. Environmental Site Assessments
Tad McGalliard 275
55. Remediation Planning, Reuse Planning and Site Design
Tad McGalliard 280
56. Remediation Technologies and Remedies
Tad McGalliard 283
Part V. The Future
57. The Importance of the Arts
Jay H. Dick 295
58. How Civic Tech Can Address Urban Inequality
Stephen Goldsmith 299
59. Are ­Car-Free Bridges the Future?
Alex Marshall 301
60. Reuses of Brownfields
Tad McGalliard 303
61. Identifying Future Uses for Brownfields
Environmental Law Institute 306
62. As Cities Look at Options for Financing Infrastructure, They Keep an Eye Out for ­Low-Income Residents
Paul W. Taylor 312
Appendices
A. Glossary and Acronyms of Brownfields and Economic Development Practices
Joaquin Jay Gonzalez III and Ignacio Dayrit 323
B. Brownfields Revitalization Act (2002) 330
C. Brownfields Utilization, Investment and Local Development (BUILD) Act (2018) 332
D. Model Brownfields Legislation for States
Environmental Law Institute 335
About the Contributors 354
Index 357

“Urban planners and students of redevelopment will find many good ideas and best practices in this book. …recommended”—Choice