Grant will help clean up neighborhood

Listen to this article

A $200,000 Brownfield grant from the Environmental Protection Agency will be used to develop a comprehensive plan to clean up the Jay Orchard Street Neighborhood.

The Orchard-Whitney site has been home to numerous industrial entities since the 1900s, but has been vacant since 2008. The grant will allow the study of site redevelopment feasibility alternatives, analyze the economic impact of those alternatives, and continue the momentum underway for the revitalization of the site and the neighborhood. Key project partners will include Charles Settlement House and Charles House Neighbors in Action.

“Clean and safe neighborhoods are important for every family in Rochester, and essential if we want to attract new businesses and residents to our area,” said Rep. Louise Slaughter in announcing the grant Monday.

A brownfield site is real property, the expansion, redevelopment, or reuse of which may be complicated by the presence or potential presence of a hazardous substance, pollutant, or contaminant.