EPA awards $198K to Central Florida Regional Planning Council for brownfields sites
ATLANTA – The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) announced on April 25th that it plans to award the Central Florida Regional Planning Council (CFRPC) with a brownfield grant to help them plan for the assessment, clean up and reuse of Brownfields properties. This funding is part of the Brownfields Area-Wide Planning program, which aims to help communities develop area-wide plans and specific implementation strategies for integrating the cleanup and reuse of brownfield sites into neighborhood revitalization efforts.
“EPA is certainly excited about the opportunity for communities in the Southeast Region to realize sustainable environmental results,” said EPA Region 4 Administrator, Gwen Keyes Fleming. “Through EPA’s Brownfields Program we support not just environmental revitalization but economic revitalization.”
EPA has selected the Central Florida Regional Planning Council as a Brownfields Area-Wide Planning grant recipient. CFRPC will work with the community, area businesses, the City of Lakeland and Polk County to develop an area-wide plan and implementation strategy for a brownfields property on the southeast shore of Lake Parker. Under this grant, CFRPC will carry out research, inventory existing conditions, effectively involve the community and other stakeholders to identify priorities, and identify the resources needed to bring the plan to fruition. Key partners who will work with the CFRPC are the City of Lakeland, Polk County, Florida Department of Environmental Protection, Combee Area Revitalization Effort, and various other community groups.
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