The City of Alexander has held its last public hearing in an attempt to receive around 3.5 million dollars in a Brownfield grant. The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) grant will be used to raze the old hospital building on the former Human Development Center property.
Mayor Crystal Herrmann noted she began this process during her first month as mayor in January, 2023.
“It has taken us this long to get to the point where we qualify to apply,” Herrmann said. “There's been a lot of wonderful people that has helped us with this whole process. We've got ... the Central Arkansas Development District, that has assisted us, of course, with council’s approval.”
While no one suggested how the property should be developed, Herrmann was peppered with a barrage of questions. Responding to the various questions she said, “I don't know how many months it takes for them to release the awards. It will be within the 2026 window.” …
Concerning the future of the property Herrmann quoted the proposed master development plan. “It states mixed commercial residential.” …
The cleanup, “[W]ill stimulate some attention and maybe have some folks come forward more than to say, Hey, this is looking good. It's getting cleaned up. Hi, I'm a developer.”
Herrmann has been attempting to acquire a Brownfield grant in order to make the former HDC property safe for development. The grant program is funded by the EPA and is used to clean properties where the presence, or potential presence, of a hazardous substance, pollutant, or contaminant makes development difficult. The expectation is the hospital building contains asbestos, lead paint and potentially other unknown hazards.
Red box outlines the area
No comments:
Post a Comment