City of Palm Bay is a subrecipient of a $1.5 million brownfields assessment grant from the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency

In May 2024, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) announced more than $300 million in Brownfields Multipurpose, Assessment, and Cleanup Grants awarded across the nation. The East Central Florida Regional Planning Council (RPC) received a $1.5 million Brownfields Assessment Grant to be used community-wide over the course of four-years. The grant will be administered by the East Central Florida Resilient Corridors Coalition (Coalition), which includes the City of Palm Bay, south Melbourne, and the cities of Kissimmee and Apopka – with RPC as the lead agency.

“Brownfields grant funding can serve as a vital economic development tool to foster redevelopment and reuse of key commercial and industrial sites in communities where there is real or perceived contamination”, said Joan Junkala-Brown, Deputy City Manager. Grant funds can be used to conduct Phase I and Phase II Environmental Site Assessments (ESA) on identified sites, the cost of which can be a barrier for certain development opportunities. The target area identified in the grant application focused on an area of Palm Bay referred to as “the compound”.

The Resilient Corridors Coalition will complete an evaluation of proposals from professional consulting firms interested in contracting to assist with the implementation of the brownfields program in accordance with federal regulations. Following the start of the 2025 calendar year, the City will bring forth a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) between the RPC and the City of Palm Bay to formalize the partnership and use of the grant funds. Following the selection of a professional consultant, the Coalition will kick-off grant deliverables, including community engagement opportunities, identification of parcels, collaboration with property owners, site assessments, and other eligible activities.

For more information, email econdev@pbfl.org.