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REMEDIATION SECTION
Start Now to Meet the “Clean Ohio
Revitalization Fund” Deadline
The Ohio Department of Development (ODOD), which administers the Clean Ohio Revitalization Fund (CORF), has established an April 2, 2007 deadline for submitting applications for Round 4 of the popular brownfields redevelopment grant program. Based on the Payne Firm’s experience in preparing winning applications in prior CORF rounds, interested parties should start now in order to meet the deadline. The future status of CORF beyond this round of funding is uncertain.
The CORF is a state-wide, competitive grant program that pays up to 75% of eligible acquisition, demolition/ abatement, cleanup and infrastructure costs to redevelop under-utilized industrial or commercial sites. The maximum grant award in prior rounds has been $3 million per site. A municipal or government entity must participate as an applicant, and can enter into development agreements with non-profit or for-profit organizations. The most competitive applications are those that have a committed end-user for the redeveloped property and provide an economic and environmental benefit to the state and community.
The required steps in preparing a CORF application include:
- Select project and align applicant, development partner and end-user
- Complete Voluntary Action Program (VAP) Phase I Assessment
- Complete VAP Phase II Assessment
- Prepare reliable cost estimates for acquisition, abatement/demolition and cleanup
- Prepare CORF grant applicationSubmit completed application to library, ODOD, and Ohio EPA
This process can take up to six months to complete, indicating that interested applicants and developers should start now if they expect to submit an application for Round 4. The awards for Round 4 will be announced in October 2007, with funds available for the project by approximately January 2008.
The Payne Firm has assisted clients in obtaining approximately $6 million in Clean Ohio funds. We have also developed a proprietary ranking system that helps municipalities and developers choose between competing sites based on objective criteria. For more information on Clean Ohio or to arrange a meeting to discuss its applicability to your redevelopment projects, please contact Don Fay at daf@paynefirm.com
or Greg Kutsko at gpk@paynefirm.com.
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