![[logo] US EPA](http://www.epa.gov/epafiles/images/logo_epaseal.gif){kind=logo}
Brownfields Success Stories
In Worcester, Working Together to Restore Former Industrial Land for Public Use
Central Massachusetts, through the Central Massachusetts Economic Development Authority (CMEDA), is providing examples of how partnerships between federal, state, and private entities and the local community can produce results far beyond what a single organization might expect. In June 1996, EPA awarded a $200,000 Brownfields Pilot grant to CMEDA, an organization established one year earlier by the state to oversee the area's brownfields efforts. The Brownfields Pilot has helped CMEDA form partnerships to leverage millions to restore an abandoned mill property into a recreational greenspace. A key outcome of this effort will be a unique museum that celebrates the rich industrial history of Worcester.
Beginning in January 1999, meetings were held that included CMEDA, the City of Worcester, community representatives, the state Department of Environmental Management (DEM), the Blackstone River Valley National Heritage Corridor Commission (BRVNHCC), Preservation Worcester, the Worcester Historical Museum, and the Massachusetts Audubon Society. Together they have formed the "Visitors Center Task Force" and are working to transform a selection of former industrial properties into a visitors center with a History of the Industrial Revolution theme, and an environmental training facility that will cover the spectrum of HAZMAT prevention and cleanup. Funding for this transformation is coming from a variety of sources, including EPA's Brownfields Pilot, the Massachusetts Highway Department, $260,000 from members of the BRVNHCC, $500,000 from the state DEM, and a Brownfields Fund established by the state and managed by the Massachusetts Development Office. For more information on the how federal, state, and local partnerships can be used to restore brownfields sites, contact Lynne Jennings at EPA Region 1, (617) 918-1210.