Thanks to the expertise of people like Berrien County’s Dan Fette, the county’s track record on issues relating to brownfield redevelopment is held in high regard across the nation. Nevertheless, there are prime opportunities to learn from other communities doing a sterling job in that arena, and that has taken Cornerstone Alliance President Rob Cleveland to the National Brownfields Training Conference this week to Los Angeles, where he is networking with the best and taking in that conference’s broad array of educational programming.
As the boss at Berrien County’s lead economic development agency, Cleveland say, “I think this is a really important conference, as a large percentage of economic development involves brownfield sites.” The state of Michigan clearly agrees, inasmuch as the Michigan Economic Development Corporation is the largest — Platinum level — sponsor of the event being hosted at the Los Angeles Convention Center.
Cornerstone’s Chief Operating Officer, Greg Vaughn, attended the conference two years ago, and Cleveland says, “These events are so important to better understand how to leverage tools that result in new development.”
He is among the first to sing the praises of Berrien County’s Economic Development Director, Dan Fette, saying, “Our community is fortunate to have someone like Dan Fette, who is an expert in brownfield redevelopment and how to utilize state and federal tools.” He adds, “Because of development by Harbor Shores, the regular dredging of our Harbor, and the professional standing of the many area environmental engineering firms, we have great relationships with the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), Michigan EGLE and EDA, to name just a few. These government entities have a positive view of Berrien County because of the successful redevelopment projects that have been remediated, completed, and those currently still in progress.”
It was back in 1996, that a cross-section of stakeholders came together in Pittsburgh for the very first federally co-sponsored National Brownfields Training Conference. This year’s event is co-sponsored by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency and the International City/County Management Association (ICMA). It is the largest gathering of stakeholders focused on cleaning up and reusing formerly utilized commercial and industrial properties in the nation.
Cleveland says, “There are various levels of contamination in each brownfield site. Brownfield tools were created in order to limit liability, to remediate a site and are an effective way of returning a blighted, contaminated site to active use for the public good.”
Berrien County’s track record is a strong one. Cleveland notes, “We have a long list of successful brownfield redevelopment projects in Berrien County. It’s one aspect that sets us apart from other communities,” and adds, “These successes show that Berrien County places a priority on a clean, healthy community that believes in sustainable redevelopment.”
According to the EPA, every $1 in assessment leverages more than $16 in private sector investment, helping lead the economic development revival.
The heart of this year’s conference — Brownfields 2019 — is a dynamic educational program of speakers, discussions, mobile workshops, films and other learning formats that are calibrated to provide case study examples, program updates, and useful strategies for meeting brownfield challenges head on.
Individuals who attend include local, state, and federal government leaders…federal and state contractors…real estate developers and investors…financial and insurance providers and risk management practitioners…economic development officials and community development organizations…construction and building firms…and many more.
Cleveland says the conference features more than 100 educational sessions in a variety of formats. He’s attending such sessions as:
- Transforming a Neighborhood from a Food Desert to a Food Hub
- Brownfields Grants & Mutual Benefits of Partnering with Environmental Justice Communities
- Neighborhood Economic Development Doesn’t Happen by Accident
- Catalytic Brownfield Financing Solutions
- Hottest Revitalization Topics 2019
- Opportunity Zones: New Financing Strategies for Brownfield Redevelopment
Those were all on just one day of his schedule at the multi-day conference which wraps up tomorrow.
