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Oakland County to use $1.5 million EPA brownfield grant; Southfield allocated $60,000 in consortium agreement
Summary
County planning staff told the committee the EPA awarded $1.5 million for environmental site assessments; county will manage a consortium agreement that earmarks $60,000 for the city of Southfield and $60,000 for Community Housing Network, with the remainder available to other communities.
Oakland County planning staff described how a new U.S. EPA brownfield assessment grant of $1.5 million will be used to pay for environmental site assessments and to support brownfield redevelopment across the county. The committee voted to recommend a consortium memorandum of understanding for the grant to the Board of Commissioners.
Kristen Wolfgang and Brad Hanson of the county planning division explained the program and the consortium arrangement. "Put in a nutshell, the Brownfield program is the cleanup and redevelopment of old contaminated or received contaminated lands," Hanson said. County staff said the grant funds will be used primarily to pay for Phase I and Phase II environmental site assessments for nominated properties and will be administered through a consortium of eligible local units of government.
Under the memorandum of understanding before the committee, the county is allocating $60,000 for the city of Southfield and $60,000 for the Community Housing Network as part of the consortium structure; staff said those earmarks do not prevent communities elsewhere in Oakland County from applying for funds if unused money remains. County planning staff described prior grant rounds and said this is the latest in a series of EPA brownfield assessment grants, with the county emphasizing projects that have a known likelihood of contamination rather than speculative screening uses.
Hanson outlined program mechanics: Phase I environmental site assessments typically cost about $3,000 and the county generally funds Phase I fully under the grant; Phase II testing can range into the tens of thousands of dollars and the county typically requires a cost-share (often about 50%) from developers to demonstrate commitment to redevelopment. Hanson said the program also now includes eligibility tied to the October 2023 housing TIF changes, which can make affordable housing projects eligible for brownfield incentives under Michigan law.
Commissioner Weidberg moved the recommendation; Commissioner Taylor supported it. Committee members asked about how the county prioritizes projects, whether a property is automatically considered a brownfield prior to testing (staff said designation depends on documentation such as blight letters or test results), and how much of the $1.5 million remains available after the earmarks (staff said the bulk of the grant remains available countywide; earmarked money is reimbursed to projects as eligible expenses are submitted).
The committee chair announced the motion carried and said the item will be forwarded to the Board of Commissioners for final action. Planning staff noted the county has a track record of using past grants for measurable cleanup and redevelopment and that the memorandum of understanding governs consortium participation and project nomination processes.
The committee discussion clarified that a brownfield designation usually follows documented findings or a local governmental blight/obsolete designation; staff said the EPA funds are meant to support assessments for sites that are likely to have contamination issues rather than purely speculative screening.
