GOPC, in partnership with the Ohio Economic Development Association, the Ohio Land Bank Association, and the County Commissioners Association of Ohio, hosted a webinar to highlight the Brownfield Remediation Program. The Brownfield Remediation Program, which began accepting applications earlier this month on December 5th, will remain open through April 1st, 2024.
In coordination with the application portal opening on December 5th, the Ohio Department of Development released additional resources through a Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ) document. This webinar provided ODOD with the opportunity to further highlight this document and answer questions from participants.
The FAQ provided by ODOD provides stakeholders with answers to common questions. Additional information can be found through the November 20, 2023 webinar hosted by ODOD and the webinar hosted earlier this week by GOPC, OEDA, CCAO, and OLBA. For project specific questions, or for those not answered in any of the mentioned resources, ODOD staff are happy to answer questions submitted to redevelopment@development.ohio.gov.
$350 million in funds for the Brownfield Remediation Program has been made available over the next two years. Approximately $175 million will be available now through April 1. During this first year of program funding, $1 million has been reserved for each county in the state. $82 million in competitive grants will be awarded on a first come, first serve basis. Any remaining funds unreserved for projects this year will be made available along with an additional $175 million in funding during in the next fiscal year, beginning in July, 2024. All awards next year will be awarded in the form of competitive grants awarded on a first come, first serve basis.
Projects in each county must be submitted through a designated lead applicant. The lead applicant is responsible for the submission of all applications for that county and will serve as a pass-through entity for project funds. Click here for a list of lead entities.
Eligible subrecipients of grant funds, who must have an executed agreement with the lead applicant include local governments (cites, townships, and counties), nonprofit organizations, community development corporations, regional planning commissions, county land banks, and community action agencies.
For-profit entities are eligible if they have written agreements with the lead entity or an eligible sub-recipient.
Those who are interested in applying for funds and learning more about brownfield remediation can visit the Ohio Brownfields website, an initiative of the Greater Ohio Policy Center.