Annapolis committee backs transfer to Resilience Authority to pursue $4M Brownfields grant, clarifies reverter and archaeology rules

Annapolis Environmental Planners Committee recommended favorably on July 25 that the city transfer specified Spa Road parcels to the Resilience Authority so the authority can pursue an EPA Brownfields grant of up to $4,000,000 to remediate contamination and support future redevelopment.

The committee approved a set of amendments that the group said would protect the city’s long‑term interests: a reverter clause to return remediated property to the city upon EPA acceptance of the remediation; a requirement that the Resilience Authority coordinate with the Annapolis Heritage Commission and secure any council‑required on‑site archaeological consulting (with costs and liability for services beyond grant requirements to be covered by the city); and explicit language confirming that Williams Way/Weems Whalen Field will remain a city parcel and not be transferred as part of this action.

Why it matters: The action is meant to give the Resilience Authority legal standing to receive and hold federal Brownfields funds and to carry out remediation activities that city staff say will reduce redevelopment costs (transport and disposal of contaminated soils, capping, vapor barriers and other typical Brownfields remedies). Committee members said federal changes in April accelerated the timeline and created a tight deadline for a November grant application, prompting the expedited committee work.

What the committee approved and the immediate effect - The committee voted to recommend favorably the ordinance (listed as O‑2025 in committee materials) as amended, and approved committee amendments consolidating language from two proposed sets of edits discussed in detail during the meeting. The recommendation will go to the full City Council for action. The committee record shows voice votes approving the agenda and minutes earlier in the meeting; the committee then debated and approved the amendments and the favorable recommendation on the ordinance by voice vote.

Key provisions explained - Reverter clause: The committee inserted language that the deed transferring property to the Resilience Authority will include a reverter provision: property (or properties) will revert to the City of Annapolis upon acceptance of the remediation activities by EPA as completed pursuant to grant terms and conditions. Committee members said this removes an earlier, arbitrary seven‑year limit and ties the transfer back to objective grant close‑out conditions.

- Archaeology and the Heritage Commission: The committee added a requirement that the Resilience Authority coordinate with the Annapolis Heritage Commission and secure any council‑required on‑site archaeological consulting not already covered by grant requirements, with any additional costs and associated liability covered by the city. Deputy City Manager Jackie Dial and legislative staff advised the committee the language should make clear that archaeological work required by the grant would be paid from grant funds, while any additional heritage‑driven work would be a city cost and subject to council approval.

- Williams Way / Weems Whalen Field: Committee members confirmed that the parcel commonly referred to as Williams Way/Weems Whalen (the field parcel) was not included in the set of parcels to be transferred; that parcel will remain city‑owned and will be treated separately in future subdivision and Voluntary Cleanup Program (VCP) filings.

Technical and regulatory status - Voluntary Cleanup Program and MDE: City staff and consultants reported that the project is in the Maryland Department of the Environment (MDE) Voluntary Cleanup Program (VCP). Staff said they submitted a first response to MDE comments and closed several administrative items. Two MDE comments remained at the time of the meeting: one requiring a correction to a SDAT (State Department of Assessments and Taxation) entry and a question about other regulatory programs. Staff said they had resolved the stormwater/permits issue after receiving a closing letter from EPA Region 3 that arrived after their initial response and that they will provide that correspondence to MDE.

- What Brownfields money would pay for: Consultants briefed the committee that Brownfields grants typically fund the most expensive remediation components tied to redevelopment: excavation, transport and disposal of contaminated soils, construction of caps for parking/landscaping, and vapor barriers beneath occupied buildings or slab‑on‑grade construction. The committee was told that no large‑scale active groundwater treatment or methane collection systems are currently anticipated.

Funding, other grants and development partners - Committee discussion noted interaction with the Choice Neighborhoods Initiative (CNI) proposal and the Housing Authority (referred to in the record as HACA) as potential development partners. Staff said the Resilience Authority’s role would be to pursue and hold the grant funds and distribute them under agreed terms; actual construction and developer selection would be organized by the city, HACA or a joint developer depending on how CNI and other funding are structured. Committee members cautioned that grant awards are competitive and that the city would still need to secure local matching or other funds for broader development work.

- City capital planning: Committee members asked staff to review the CIP for any funding tied to Williams Way/Weems Whalen and were told that only limited amounts were currently identified for CNI‑related work (staff cited $1,000,000 from the city and $1,000,000 from the state as illustrative of early planning dollars) and that further budgeting would occur in future budget cycles.

Process steps and next actions - Staff said they will produce a single committee‑level amendment that consolidates the changes the committee approved (combining language from the two amendment packages discussed), and that the consolidated amendment will be provided for the City Council meeting where the ordinance will be considered. The committee also requested a fiscal‑impact note be revised to reflect potential additional, though likely minimal, costs associated with reversion and staff time for deed processing.

What committee members emphasized - Multiple members stressed the need to preserve flexibility (for example, allowing separate VCP applications if the parcels are subdivided) and to avoid locking the city into a single development path if CNI or other plans change. At the same time, members emphasized the urgency created by federal funding changes and the November grant deadline.

Quotation Ashley Leonard, assistant city attorney, said: “The resiliency authority will not be doing any development or construction out there. It would probably be either the city and/or HACA with its private developer depending on how the CNI grant proceeds.”

Ending The committee recommendation sends the ordinance and a consolidated committee amendment to the City Council. Council members and staff said they plan additional ordinance briefing material (a revised fiscal‑impact note and a single committee amendment text) before the council hearing scheduled on the next municipal meeting agenda.