PROPOSED APPLICATIONS FOR BROWNFIELDS ASSESSMENT GRANTS The Environmental Services Division (ESD) of the City of Oakland is planning

to apply for Brownfields Assessment grants from the United States Environmental Protection Agency (USEPA) for the year 2011. USEPA brownfields grants support environmental management and protection that is locally-based, encourage strong public-private partnerships, and promote innovative and creative ways to assess, cleanup and redevelop impacted sites. For more information on the USEPA Brownfields program, please visit USEPA s website at http://www.epa.gov/brownfields/. What are Brownfields? Brownfields are abandoned, idled or underused industrial and commercial facilities where expansion or redevelopment is complicated by real or perceived environmental contamination. What Oakland Sites are Proposed for Grants? San Pablo Corridor The San Pablo Avenue Corridor is a 1.5-mile portion of the San Pablo Avenue in the West Oakalnd neighborhood of the City of Oakland. The Corridor is physically defined by two major freeways on either end of the Corridor (I-980 and I-580), from West Grand Avenue to 40th Street San Pablo Corridor was selected due to the number of brownfields, the proximity of sensitive populations of children and seniors to the brownfields, and its depressed economic conditions. The City is proposing to conduct environmental assessments at multiple sites located along the San Pablo Corridor in order to facilitate their cleanup and redevelopment. Sites will be selected based on input from the community, strategic partners, and the Oakland Redevelopment Agency. The City is proposing to apply for the maximum allowable Brownfields Assessment Grant of $200,000 for environmental assessments in this area. Former Cryer Boatyard Site The Cryer Boatyard site is located at 1899 Dennison Street in Oakland, near the Union Point park, and along the Oakland estuary. The site consists of two parcels, one

along the waterfront, and the other in the upland near Dennison Street. The proposed grant application is for the waterfront parcel. The site is contaminated by slag materials and related heavy metals believed to have been dumped during the operations in the past. During 2009-2010, the City of Oakland has cleaned up the upland portion of the site, and has developed into a public park and a segment of the Oakland Waterfront trail. Even though Oakland has a vast coastal front, beach access is limited for recreation. The City is proposing to conduct environmental assessments involving soil and sediment sampling in the waterfront parcel of the site in order to facilitate its cleanup and redevelopment as a potential beach area in the future. The City is proposing to apply for the maximum allowable Brownfields Assessment Grant of $350,000 for environmental assessments at the Cryer Boatyard site. Questions or Comments? The deadline for submitting the grant applications to the EPA is October 15, 2010. If you have questions or comments on these proposals, please call Gopal Nair, Environmental Specialist, at 238-6361. You may also send him an email at gnair@oaklandnet.com.