MONTPELIER, Vt. – Gov. Phil Scott and the Agency of Commerce and Community Development announced that an additional $2.83 million of the $10 million appropriated for brownfield site remediation has been committed in 2022 for projects across the state. The largest cleanup award to date, $1,233,305, was to Edgar May Health and Recreation Center in Springfield, Vt. In total, the State is investing $25 million in brownfields this fiscal year.
“Economic revitalization has been a top priority of my Administration since day one, and cleaning up brownfields – sites that once helped support their communities but have become unusable – and turning them into opportunities once again is an important piece of that work,” said Governor Scott. “The Agencies of Commerce and Natural Resources have worked together to quickly deploy this important funding and I want to thank them and their regional partners for their efforts.”
The Edgar May project in Windsor County includes the remediation and reuse of two existing buildings — the foundry and former J&L Plant — which will be connected to house expanded offerings including childcare, group exercise, multipurpose space, lifestyle medicine offices, indoor rock climbing and walking track, and a basketball court. A redevelopment project on this site has been envisioned and worked on since 2006, as ANR’s Department of Environmental Conservation studied the contamination and sought funding to properly address, clean up, and redevelop it. The Brownfields Revitalization Fund proposed by Governor Scott and supported by the legislature, helped fulfill the funding needs to clean up the site after 16 years of work.
In the five months since the Brownfields Revitalization Fund received funding, $4.53 million of ACCD’s $10 million portion of the funds have been awarded to 14 projects in four counties – Chittenden, Washington, Windham, and Windsor. The 14 projects combined are anticipated to clean up nearly 17 contaminated acres and create 490 jobs, 202 units of housing, and 80 new hotel rooms. Additional awards committed since the start of 2022 include the Lineage Reality Group in Montpelier and Black River Crossing in Springfield, which support the expansion of residential and commercial uses in the recreation, food and beverage, clean energy, and hospitality sectors.
A full list of approved cleanup projects and their economic impact, program details, FAQs, and the application form can be found on the Brownfields Revitalization Fund State Program webpage.