Berlin, Vt. - Governor Phil Scott and the Department of Economic Development announced today the state of Vermont is committing $4,058,184 from the Vermont Brownfields Revitalization Fund that promotes the productive reuse of contaminated sites to cleanup properties in Hardwick, Barre, Newport, Burlington, Fairlee, Rutland City, and Winooski.
“Cleaning up unused brownfields and turning them into economic opportunities has been a priority for my team,” said Governor Scott. “Transforming these brownfields into job creators and much needed housing is exactly the kind of work Vermont needs advance.”
Details on the latest round of investment can be found below:
Town of Hardwick
- Location: Hardwick, Caledonia County
- Award: $1,200,056
- Purpose: Redevelopment of a former automotive repair station
- Anticipated outputs: 25 full-time employees; reused infrastructure; 4.7 acres mitigated
Turning Point Center
- Location: Barre, Washington County
- Award: $566,433
- Purpose: Relocation and expansion of services for those suffering from substance use disorder
- Anticipated outputs: 4 full-time employees; reused infrastructure; expanded programming; .4 acres mitigated
Gilman Housing Trust
- Location: Newport, Orleans County
- Award: $168,506
- Purpose: Newport Crossing campus redevelopment
- Anticipated outputs: Reused infrastructure; 3 units of housing; .27 acres mitigated
Champlain Housing Trust
- Location: Burlington, Chittenden County
- Award: $1,052,692
- Purpose: Post Apartments redevelopment; a mixed-use commercial/community and housing project
- Anticipated outputs: 13 full-time employees; reused infrastructure; .58 acres remediated; 38 units of housing
Golden Junk, LLC
- Location: Winooski, Chittenden County
- Award: $253,712.70
- Purpose: Redevelopment of a former automotive repair station
- Anticipated outputs: 10 full-time employees; reused infrastructure, on a site vacant since 2015; 0.2 acres mitigated; 2 units of housing
512 Main, LLC
- Location: Fairlee, Orange County
- Award: $16,785
- Purpose: Redevelopment of a blighted vacant gas station
- Anticipated outputs: 5 full-time employees; reused infrastructure, on a site vacant since 2013; 0.2 acres remediated.
Vermont Farmers Market Education Center, Inc
- Location: Rutland City, Rutland County
- Award: $800,000
- Purpose: Redevelopment of Farmer’s Hall, a 14,750-square foot, vacant commercial space
- Anticipated outputs: 21 full-time employees; reused infrastructure, on a vacant site; 2.93 acres mitigated
“These brownfield grants are an invaluable economic development tool,” said Commissioner Joan Goldstein of the Department of Economic Development. “The Department of Economic Development is devoted to creating more opportunities for business, housing, and employment in every town in this state, and our Brownfields Revitalization Fund is helping us get this important work done, rehabilitating these properties so they can contribute to their local economies.”
The Vermont Department of Environmental Conservation is an important partner in brownfield remediation providing expertise and technical assistance for the redevelopment of a contaminated property.
Since the state Brownfields Revitalization Fund (BRF) opened in October 2021, nearly $15 million in cleanup funding has been awarded to 32 projects in ten counties (Caledonia, Chittenden, Franklin, Lamoille, Orange, Orleans, Rutland, Washington, Windham, and Windsor). The projects combined are anticipated to clean up more than 51 contaminated acres and create 632+ jobs and 468 units of housing. Historically, remediation projects have been funded exclusively by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency.