Monroe Dispatch - No Struggle, No Progress

Have you seen an old or abandoned gas station, warehouse or similar site and said to yourself, “Someone should fix that place up because it would make a really nice (fill in the blank).”? The technical name for such a location is a Brownfield. Taking abandoned sites from “eyesore” to “eye opener” is a process. One that is well worth it because the redeveloped sites can breathe new life into local neighborhoods. There are multiple sites in Monroe, West Monroe, and Ouachita Parish that have the potential for Brownfield projects; and, we want to learn all that we can to maximize the opportunity to secure federal funds for local redevelopment projects.

In June of 2019, Region 6 Environmental Protection Agency Director Ronnie Crossland and his team awarded our local government coalition a $479,000 EPA Brownfield Assessment Grant. Our local coalition consists of the City of Monroe, City of West Monroe and the Ouachita Parish Police Jury. The focus of Brownfield development efforts is to take land previously used for commercial or industrial purposes, clean it up, remediate any potential contamination, and safely used the site for other purposes.

This week, our local government coalition, represented by West Monroe Staci Mitchell and her Chief of Staff, along with City of Monroe Planning & Urban Development Director Ellen Hill and me, are using various meetings, work sessions and networking opportunities to learn all we can about the Brownfield development process. We are in California attending the 4-day National Brownfields Training Conference co-sponsored by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and the International City/County Management Association (ICMA). Our goal is to make connections, identify additional funding, and learn best practices that will help us create more economic development opportunities here at home.

By working together, we are making a difference. Monroe is one city, with one future!