Traffic coursed up and down West Capitol Drive Thursday as dignitaries talked about clean up atop a brownfield at 35th Street. Brownfields are patches of abandoned land that are contaminated from past industrial use.
In the 1870s, the 14-acre parcel on Milwaukee’s north side was farmland. A variety of heavy industrial uses followed, leaving contaminants in their wake.
EPA Secretary Michael Regan visited Milwaukee Thursday to announce $315 million for the clean up of brownfields across the country. "Thanks to this holistic and historic boost from the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law, this is the largest amount of funding ever awarded in the nearly 30-year history of (the) brownfield program for EPA," Regan announced.
He called the Milwaukee site a shining star opportunity.
“This site clean up will compliment other EPA investments in the 30th Street Industrial Corridor, which is a key area of the city’s disproportionately impacted by the presence of brownfields, delivering economic and public health benefits to the surrounding communities,” Regan said.
Benji Timm with the City of Milwaukee is managing the Century City project. He says a $2 million EPA allotment will pay to clean up the site.
“We’ve assessed the soil and groundwater and now we’re coming up with a plan to clean up. We’re working with everybody to come up with a plan that supports development on this site,” Timm said.
“Everybody” includes Yvonne McCaskill. The 50-year nearby resident represents the Century City Triangle Neighborhood Association.
“We want to make this a walkable neighborhood where people can live, work, and recreate right in their own backyard. One of the issues historically has been we work in silos. So we want to bring all neighborhoods together for a common cause and that common cause is quality of life,” McCaskill says.
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