Reporter message: $500K EPA grant, free ACs, $25M Rice University gift
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Southwest Houston communities will receive a $500,000 federal investment to identify contaminated properties and prepare them for redevelopment. Congressman Al Green helped secure the Environmental Protection Agency Community-Wide Brownfields Assessment Grant for the Hiram Clarke/Fort Bend Redevelopment Authority.
The funds come nearly 13 years after Houston created Tax Increment Reinvestment Zone 25 to encourage investment in Hiram Clarke and Fort Bend Houston.
The grant will fund property inventories, environmental assessments, redevelopment planning, and community engagement, per a statement released by Green. The authority plans 21 initial assessments and more extensive testing at up to five properties.
Brownfields are properties where actual or potential contamination can hinder redevelopment because cleanup can be costly. Green said the federal program helps communities return such properties to productive use.
The 6,077-acre rede…