State and National Brownfields Resources

Wisconsin

Blight Elimination and Brownfield Redevelopment Grants (CDBG-BEBR)
The Blight Elimination and Brownfield Redevelopment Program (BEBR), housed in the Wisconsin Department of Commerce, provides grant funds to assist local governments, businesses and individuals with assessing and remediating the environmental contamination of an abandoned, idle or underused industrial or commercial facility or site. A redevelopment plan that promotes economic development and has a positive effect on the environment is an essential element in a successful BEBR application.

Petroleum Environmental Clean-up Fund Act (PECFA)
The PECFA Program is a reimbursement program returning a portion of incurred remedial cleanup costs to owners of eligible petroleum product systems including home heating oil systems.

Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources
The home page for the DNR is a gateway for a vast amount of information related to Wisconsin's natural resources. See the bureau specific links below for brownfield related programs and information available within the DNR.

• Bureau of Remediation and Redevelopment
  The Remediation and Redevelopment (RR) Program oversees the investigation and cleanup of environmental contamination and the redevelopment of contaminated properties. A variety of information can be obtained on topics such as the dry-cleaner environmental response program, liability exemptions, technical assistance and department publications.
• Bureau of Community Financial Assistance
  This bureau administers grant and loan programs and provides staff assistance to local governments and interested groups supporting brownfield redevelopment. Numerous programs exist within this bureau (e.g. Stewardship, Site Assessment Grants, Land Recycling Loans) that may assist in brownfield redevelopment projects.

Transportation Economic Assistance Program (TEA Grants)
This program provides state grants up to $1 million to governing bodies, private businesses, and consortiums for road, rail, harbor and airport projects that help attract employers to Wisconsin, or encourage business and industry to remain and expand in the state.

Environmental Remediation Tax Incremental Finance Law (ER-TIF)
ER TIF was approved by the Wisconsin Legislature in 1997 as a financial tool political subdivisions could use to pay for specific environmental remediation expenses. It was modified by the Legislature in 1999 and targets brownfield remediation projects.

Forward Wisconsin
Forward WI is a unique public-private organization that specializes in marketing and business recruitment for Wisconsin. While Forward WI does not focus on brownfield redevelopment, their organization may be of assistance for your local redevelopment needs. In addition to numerous marketing activities, Forward WI provides LocationOne Information System (LOIS) - an Internet-based application that provides state, county, metro, locality, building and site information.

Milwaukee Economic Development Corporation
A non-profit corporation offering financial resources to benefit greater Milwaukee's economic growth. Brownfield financing assistance is offered through matching grants for site assessments and low-interest loans for redevelopment.

Menomonee Valley Partners (MVP)
A public-private partnership dedicated to the redevelopment of Milwaukee's Menomonee Valley. MVP works with all the interest groups -- including City, County, State, and Federal government - to emphasize redevelopment that compliments the culture, ecology and economics of the Valley.

National

U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (Region V)
The EPA offers a wide variety of information regarding federal regulations, financing sources, publications, and news releases regarding pollution concerns.

U.S. Department of Commerce
The US Department of Commerce coordinates economic development programs to assist local development organizations in their efforts to generate jobs, and stimulate industrial, technological, and commercial growth in economically-distressed areas.

U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development
HUD assists community organizations, local governments, and the private sector to stimulate reinvestment in communities by restoring brownfields to productive use.

BrownfieldSource.org
The site provides free access to news, events, and published materials related to fundamental topics in brownfields cleanup and reuse. This site has been developed and sponsored by the International City/County Management Association to enhance the capability of local governments to address brownfields redevelopment.

Northeast-Midwest Institute
This non-profit research organizations is dedicated to the economic vitality and environmental quality of Northeast and Midwest States. It has been at the forefront of policy development and information dissemination since the early 1990s.