E.P.A. awards $500,000 brownfields grant to Clark County, Nevada, for the Maryland Parkway High Capacity Transit Corridor

SAN FRANCISCO - The E.P.A. announced today that Clark County, Nev., in collaboration with the City of Las Vegas and the Regional Transportation Commission, will gain $500,000 in federal grant funds to support the revitalization and redevelopment of the Maryland Parkway High Capacity Transit Corridor. Clark Co. is among 147 communities nationwide receiving backing to assess and clean up historically contaminated properties, also known as brownfields, for reuse and development.

"EPA is committed to helping communities strengthen their local economy and neighborhoods by cleaning up abandoned industrial and commercial properties - places where environmental cleanups and new jobs are needed most," said Jared Blumenfeld, EPA's Regional Administrator for the Pacific Southwest. "Clark Co. and their coalition partners will use these funds to enhance the Maryland Parkway High Capacity Corridor in the heart of Las Vegas' urban core."

The brownfields grant will advance the region's goals for Transit Oriented Development, economic development, and quality of life. These goals were identified through the new Southern Nevada Strong regional plan, funded by a $3.5 million HUD grant. Clark Co. and the RTC will conduct assessments to catalyze high-density, transit-oriented development of a key transportation corridor between the University of Nevada in Las Vegas and the McCarran International Airport. As the region's 1st multi-modal corridor, over the next 20 years, the development will generate much needed jobs and will spur additional development and investments in the area.

In addition to providing brownfields funds, E.P.A. is collaborating with the Regional Transportation Commission, Clark County, local partners, and the U.S. Department of Transportation through EPA's Making a Visible Difference in Communities effort - to help the Las Vegas area implement transit oriented development projects. E.P.A. has made Making a Visible Difference in Communities a cross-agency priority, which focuses work in communities where E.P.A. can best leverage agency resources and other federal investments.

Since the inception of EPA's brownfields plan in 1995, cumulative plan investments have leveraged in excess of $22 billion from a variety of public and private sources for cleanup and redevelopment activities. This equates to an average of $17.79 leveraged per E.P.A. brownfield dollar expended. These investments have resulted in approximately 105,942 jobs nationwide. EPA's brownfields plan empowers states, communities, and other stakeholders to work together to assess, safely clean up, and sustainably reuse brownfields sites.

More information on EPA's brownfields program: http://www.epa.gov/brownfields/

More information on brownfields success stories: http://www.epa.gov/brownfields/success/index.htm

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