(The Center Square) — Five localities in southern and central Virginia are set to receive $1.5 million in grants to redevelop several brownfield sites, which are currently abandoned or underused due in part to contamination from hazardous substances.
The Danville-Pittsylvania Regional Industrial Facility and the town of Vinton, right outside Roanoke, have been awarded the largest grants at $500,000 each. Danville’s dollars will go toward site remediation at the Southern Virginia Megasite, where battery separator manufacturer Microporous announced months ago it plans to build a $1.35 billion manufacturing facility. Vinton’s grant will be used to develop a former grist mill into a mixed-use development.
According to the Virginia Department of Environmental Quality, there are “thousands of opportunities” for redevelopment across Virginia, including “over 100,000 acres of previously mined lands. Brownfield sites are typically former industrial sites – manufacturing and energy production sites are common culprits – but they also include commercial facilities.
In this case, several awardees are old commercial facilities plagued by asbestos. Roanoke County has been granted over $200,000 to remediate asbestos in a vacant office complex to redevelop into mixed-use space.
The town of Altavista, 25 miles south of Lynchburg, will receive just under $200,000 to treat asbestos and other hazardous materials to rehabilitate the former Vista Theatre and add commercial space.
Finally, Patrick County will receive over $90,000 to remediate asbestos in a former hardware store and renovate the facility into a business development center.
The funds come from the Virginia Brownfields Restoration and Economic Redevelopment Assistance Fund, a partnership founded in 2011 between the Virginia Economic Development Partnership and the Department of Environmental Quality.
“VBAF grants have been a powerful catalyst for brownfield redevelopment across Virginia paving the way toward overcoming environmental challenges and unlocking new economic opportunities,” said DEQ Director Mike Rolband.
In addition to the above-mentioned grants, VEDP and DEQ awarded Bedford County, Charlottesville and the town of Basset $50,000 each in assessment and planning grants.
The brownfield assistance fund is allocated $2.25 million per year.
