Metropolitan Council awards $3.3 million in brownfield cleanup funds

Projects awarded funding are in Chaska, Lakeville, Hopkins, Minneapolis, Plymouth and St. Paul

Contact:
Bonnie Kollodge
651.602.1357

ST. PAUL -- June 27, 2007 -- Housing developments in Hopkins, Minneapolis and St. Paul are among the largest recipients of Livable Communities funds the Metropolitan Council awarded today. The Council approved $3.3 million for 13 projects in six communities, including Chaska, Lakeville, Hopkins, Minneapolis, Plymouth and St. Paul.

“These particular funds help to clean up pollutants so land and old buildings can be put to higher, more productive use,” said Council Chair Peter Bell. “The program is one of the best community investment tools we have at the Council, creating opportunities for redevelopment, improved livability and job growth.

The Council awards cleanup funds twice a year. This funding round will help clean up 73 acres, create 3,600 new jobs, increase the net tax base $6 million and encourage $310 million in private investment.

To be eligible and compete for funding, metro-area cities must participate in the Livable Communities program. More than 100 metro-area communities participate in the program, which provides funding for: 1) affordable housing, 2) development that promotes mixed-use and connected land use linking housing, jobs and services, and 3) brownfield cleanup.

Projects awarded funding include:

Chaska—Block 6 Redevelopment, $326,600 to assist with asbestos abatement and soil remediation at a two-acre site at Highway 212 and Chestnut St. where a filling station and auto repair garage currently reside. The site will be developed as a mixed-use residential and commercial building with 40 rental units, including affordable units, retail and service commercial space.

Dakota County—Mealowlark, $125,000 to help with additional soil remediation and installing vapor barriers on a seven-acre site in Lakeville formerly used for dumping demolition waste and overnight car storage. Plans call for the development of 40 affordable rental townhomes.

Hopkins—6th and Main Condominiums, $795,900 to help pay for asbestos and lead-based paint abatement, as well as soil remediation at a 3.5-acre site on Mainstreet where former uses include a gas station and car sales/repair. Development plans include 220 condominiums for ownership, including affordable units, retail space and underground parking.

Hopkins—Excelsior Crossing, $615,200 to assist with additional soil remediation at a 32-acre site on Excelsior Blvd. that had various former uses, including gas station, automotive maintenance and refrigerator repair. New development will include a small retail building and three office buildings that will be occupied primarily by Cargill.

Minneapolis—Coloplast, $54,500 to help pay for environmental investigation and soil remediation at a five-acre site on West River Rd. N. near West Broadway Ave., formerly used for a sawmill, rail yard and machine shop. Plans call for development of nearly 200,000 square feet of office space.

Minneapolis--Delisi Building, $47,500 to assist with asbestos abatement at a two-story building on West Broadway Ave. and Penn Ave. N. for rehabilitated commercial space.

Minneapolis—Longfellow Station, $295,200 to help with lead-based paint and asbestos abatement and soil remediation at a 3.6-acre site on Hiawatha Ave. that was formerly used for a commercial feed mill and animal food supplement production and distribution center. Development will include 200 units of housing, owner and rental, including affordable units.

Minneapolis—Seward Co-op, $102,600 to help with asbestos and lead-based paint abatement, removal of a storage tank, soil remediation and soil vapor mitigation at a one-acre site on Franklin Ave. E. between 28th Ave. S. and 29th Ave. S. The site had a number of former uses including grocery store, auto showroom, gas station and auto repair facility. The existing structure will be rehabilitated for a retail grocery business.

Plymouth--Bassett Creek Office Centre, $311,600 to help with soil remediation on 13 acres used for unpermitted dumping on the site after the former golf driving range at 6th Ave. and Highway 55 was closed. Development includes construction of an office building.

St. Paul—430 S. Robert St., $27,400 to help pay for soil remediation on the site, previously used for a gas station. Plans call for a retail/office building.

St. Paul—Danny Boy’s Restaurant, $57,700 to help pay for asbestos abatement and soil remediation at the 1.4-acre site on West 7th St., formerly used for commercial and residential purposes. The location will be the site of a health clinic and structured parking.

St. Paul—Hospital Linen, $552,000 to help pay costs of asbestos and lead-based paint abatement, soil vapor mitigation and soil remediation on 2.6 acres. Some older homes are located on the site on East 7th St. between Maple St. and Bates Ave. The site previously was home to a commercial laundry facility. Development plans call for 60 ownership housing units, including townhomes, rowhouses--including affordable units--and commercial space.

St. Paul—Winnipeg Apartments, $18,800 to help pay for environmental investigation, soil vapor mitigation and soil remediation at a half-acre site at Rice St. and Winnipeg Ave. Plans call for development of 28 affordable rental housing units, retail space and enclosed parking.

The Council received 20 applications for brownfield cleanup awards this funding round, totaling more than $4.2 million.

Since the Livable Communities program became law in 1995, the Council has awarded nearly $65 million in brownfield cleanup grants to 214 projects in 34 communities. The awards are helping to leverage another $3.4 billion in private investment, create more than 25,000 new jobs, increase the net tax base by $67 million and clean up more than 1,500 acres of contaminated properties.

The Metropolitan Council is the regional planning organization for the seven-county Twin Cities area. It runs the regional bus and light rail system, collects and treats wastewater, manages regional water resources, plans regional parks and administers funds that provide housing opportunities for low- and moderate-income individuals and families. The Council is appointed by and serves at the pleasure of the governor.