City of Waterville awarded Brownfield Assessment grant

Downtown Waterville

Funding to incentivize development and support environmental and civil planning efforts within the municipality

The city of Waterville is pleased to announce its successful application to the EPA’s Brownfields grant program, a federal initiative that provides direct funding for brownfields assessment, supports future cleanup activities, technical assistance, and research. Now secured, the federal funding will underwrite project costs for Waterville-based developers and investors who need to conduct civil and environmental site assessments relative to project planning activities and developing site-specific cleanup plans.

Garvan Donegan

“Having the ability to incentivize sustainable development and transform underutilized spaces into prosperous community hubs is crucial to sustaining local economic development. This funding will allow the city of Waterville to stimulate the restoration of its historic buildings and sites to encourage commercial and industrial growth, support the development of housing, and create jobs within the municipality,” explains Central Maine Growth Council Director of Planning, Innovation, and Economic Development Garvan Donegan.

Brownfield sites are those which have been contaminated by hazardous substances, pollutants, or contaminants. Sites that complete the assessment process can be redeveloped into a diverse range of uses, including housing, commercial and retail businesses, industrial workspaces, and more. Complementing a period of robust revitalization within the municipality and along the Main Street corridor, the secured assessment funding will support and sustain redevelopment projects for the next 3-years; Waterville was one of 265 communities throughout the country that was selected to receive grant funding.

“This is an exciting time for the city of Waterville, which is continuing to experience forward-moving growth related to private investment and development,” says Waterville City Manager Stephen Daly. “We look forward to providing this funding to support projects which highlight our expanding downtown, incentivize investment, and boost our existing housing stock.”

The city of Waterville will be deploying the development funding through a competitive grant application process in the fall of 2022 to support site assessments related to future development and redevelopment activities. For more information on Brownfield assessment funding, please email gdonegan@centralmaine.org.