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GENERAL SECTION
Strategies for Obtaining Clean Ohio Funding
BACKGROUND
Much interest has been generated in the public and private sectors since the Clean Ohio Fund (COF) began distributing grant money in 2002. The fund awards grants for brownfield revitalization and greenspace conservation, as well as provides environmental assistance for Priority Investment Areas. Details of the different COF programs are provided in a previous Environmental Edge that is available on our website (www.paynefirm.com). The Payne Firm assisted applicants in preparing brownfield revitalization and conservation applications for Round 1, and each application was successful. We also recently submitted a Round 2 application for the City of Cincinnati’s Queensgate South project, and are currently preparing an application for the COF Assistance Fund. Although the private sector can participate as a development partner, the applicant must be a public entity such as a municipality, port authority or park board. Based on our experience with winning applications, the following strategies are crucial to a successful COF project.
TOP 5 SUCCESS STRATEGIES:
1. Start Early. A successful application requires planning and execution of many inter-dependent tasks, some of which can be time consuming like property acquisition negotiations, environmental assessments and appraisals. Additional time may be required if funds for the required environmental assessments must be obtained from other sources.
2. Go With Your Best Project. Many communities have multiple projects that could benefit from COF grants. Screen your candidate projects and pick the best for the application by considering both its importance to the community and its likelihood of being funded. Comparing various projects’ attributes to grant criteria is an efficient way to rank the likelihood of being awarded funds.
3. Assemble the “A” (for Application) Team. Preparing a quality application requires coordinated efforts among the applicant, development partner, environmental professional, legal counsel and others. Each of these parties must dedicate individuals who are knowledgeable of the process and project goals, and are committed to preparing a winning application.
4. Leverage Other Funds. Preparing an application can be expensive, especially if Phase II sampling is needed. Be certain to investigate other funding sources to offset the application investment, such as other federal and state grants and loans, Ohio EPA technical assistance, and other programs.
5. Have the End Goal in Mind. Winning applications clearly depict how the COF grant will result in a well-planned project that will benefit the community. For brownfield revitalization projects, this includes a commitment from an end user to complete the transformation of the site.
If you have any questions or would like more information, please contact Don Fay or Dave Strayer at (513) 489-2255 or by e-mail at daf@paynefirm.com or dcs@paynefirm.com, respectively. You may visit our web site at www.paynefirm.com.
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