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TRC briefed commission on New Bern Brownfields grant; $124,000 remains and verbal extension granted
Summary
A TRC project manager updated the redevelopment commission on New Bern's $500,000 EPA Brownfields assessment and planning grant, explaining the program funds assessment and planning (not cleanup), that roughly $124,000 remains, and that EPA has verbally approved a one-year extension.
Ryan, an environmental scientist and TRC project manager, briefed the redevelopment commission on New Bern's EPA Brownfields assessment and planning grant and the technical and administrative steps TRC is undertaking.
Ryan said New Bern received a $500,000 assessment and planning award in 2022 and that TRC is supporting inventory, phase 1 and phase 2 assessments, and redevelopment planning. "The purpose of this grant is to provide funds to inventory, characterize, assess, and conduct cleanup planning for brownfield properties," he said, emphasizing that the EPA program pays for assessment and planning work but not for cleanup itself.
He explained the typical task breakdown: grant administration and community outreach; inventory and mapping; phase 1 and phase 2 environmental assessments (including asbestos, lead-based paint, mold, geophysics and soil and groundwater sampling); and redevelopment planning and options analysis. Ryan gave examples from other towns where assessment and planning work enabled communities to secure additional grants or tax credits and redevelop sites into community assets.
On New Bern's grant status, Ryan said roughly $124,000 remained in the current award and that the city had received a verbal one-year extension from EPA to spend the funds. He warned that federal brownfields funding is tighter going forward: "They've said that they're only going to award about 30 across the entire country next year," Ryan said, and encouraged the city to show progress if it wishes to be competitive for future rounds.
Commissioners asked about cleanup grants and reuse eligibility. Ryan said cleanup funding typically requires additional eligibility steps (sometimes the municipality must own the site) and that remediation and reuse decisions are risk-based: a site suitable for commercial reuse may not be acceptable for residential use unless contamination is addressed or deed restrictions are applied. He identified an old gas station on Pollock Street and a hotel site among candidate locations for further assessment and said TRC expects to finish closeout work in early 2027 if the extension remains in place.
The commission did not take formal action at the meeting; commissioners requested further details on the project list and next steps for a potential fall 2026 application for more EPA funding.
