Warehouse District EPA Assessment GrantTHE CITY OF DUBUQUE
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City Manager's Office
City Hall
50 West 13th Street
Dubuque, Iowa 52001-4864
(563) 589-4110 phone
(563) 589-4149 fax
(563) 690-6678 TDD
c m C~?cit ofdubuque.org
AtyP~LIG~ANT:
City of Dubuque, Iowa
ADDRESS: 50 W. 13th St.
Dubuque, IA 52001
PROJECT TITLE: Dubuque Warehouse District
DATE SUBMITTED: November 14, 2008
GRANT TYPE: Assessment Grant (Community-wide)
AMOUNT REQUESTED: $200,000
CONTAMINATION: Hazardous Substances
PROJECT PERIOD: October 1, 2009 -September 30, 2012
POPULATION: 57,686
AREA DESIGNATION: Area within the City of Dubuque, Iowa d efined as the Dubuque
Warehouse District
PROJECT DIRECTOR: Aaron M. DeJong, Asst. Economic Development Director
50 W. 13t" St., Dubuque, Iowa 52001
563.589.4393 (Telephone) ,
563.589.1733 (Fax)
adejong@cityofdubuque.org
ELECTED OFFICAL: Roy D. Buol, Mayor
50 W. 13t" St., Dubuque, Iowa 52001
563.589.4110 (Telephone)
563.589.4149 (Fax)
EXEC. OFFICER: Michael C. Van Milligen, City Manager
50 W. 13t" St., Dubuque, Iowa 52001
563.589.4110 (Telephone)
563.589.4149 (Fax)
ctym g r@ cityofd u b u q u e. o rg
Dear Mr. West and Ms. Klein:
The Dubuque Warehouse District is a monumental endeavor for the City of Dubuque to
create a new model for cities to redevelop their downtowns. This area will become a
sustainable, urban neighborhood designed to be a place where its residents and visitors
can live, work, and play all in one location.
The City has had a long successful relationship with the EPA. The first EPA
assessment grant the City received was to assess environmental contamination in the
Port of Dubuque, an area of the city with rich history and a focal point of the community.
The area became dilapidated because of a lack of reinvestment and environmental
issues prevented any reinvestment to occur. With the Assessment grant to help identify
Service People Integrity Responsibility Innovation Teamwork
the problems in the area, the area saw over $188 million reinvested in the area for
Phase I of America's River Project. The Port of Dubuque received the 2005 EPA
Region 7 Phoenix award for the Best redevelopment project of a brownfield area.
Phase II of the project has just begun and another $250 million of investments are
already completed or being proposed in the Port. The is just an example of how EPA
assessment funds can jumpstart a quality project that has many benefits for the
residents and visitors of Dubuque.
The City is working to further capitalize on the success of the Port of Dubuque by
expanding its redevelopment efforts to the Warehouse District, a 17-block area
originally developed as a major millworking location where many of the nation's doors,
windows, and sashes were manufactured. The area boasted over 2,500 employees
working in the area in the 1920's but started to decline in later decades, with many
industries finally ending operations in the early 1970's.
Twenty-eight historic structures remain in the district today with several of them
consisting of over 100,000 square feet of unutilized space. Major efforts have begun by
a citizen's committee, major property owners in the district, the local Main Street
organization, the City, the Economic Development Administration (EDA) and several
other partnership organizations to breathe new life into this district. A Master Plan for
the revitalization is underway and is expected to be completed in January 2009. The
plan is estimating the effort totaling $200 million attributable to infrastructure
improvements, streetscape improvements, and retail, office, and housing space
creation. The end result of this redevelopment will be an urban mixed-use
neighborhood adjacent to the Central Business District where sustainability is
embraced, the historic fabric is saved and cherished, a new workforce is created, and
sense of community is restored.
A deterrent to the redevelopment of the Warehouse District is the perceived
environmental challenges the District may have. We must address these concerns and
determine the extent of environmental contamination in the district, if any. The City has
had much success with this program and is seeking an additional grant to address the
Dubuque Warehouse District Project Area.
The EPA has been a critical partner in Dubuque's renaissance starting with the Phoenix
Award winning America's River Project and we look forward to partnering with the EPA
again to breathe new life in an integral part of Dubuque's history, the Warehouse
District.
Respectfully/,submitted,
f, G'
Michael C. Van Milligen
City Manager
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