Rendering of the Innovation Greenway
Uptown Consortium, Inc. (UCI) is pleased to announce it has received a $1 million Brownfields Multipurpose Grant from the United States Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). The funds will be used for the assessment and remediation of petroleum and hazardous waste sites within the Innovation Greenway in Uptown's Avondale neighborhood. The grant is part of $300 million through the Biden-Harris Administration’s Investing in America Agenda to revitalize and rehabilitate communities nationwide. UCI is one of seven award recipients, totaling $6.5 million, selected in Ohio and the only recipient in Southwest Ohio.
The EPA’s Brownfields and Land Revitalization grants focus on cleaning up hazardous pollutants from redeveloped land. The program's critical goal is ensuring that residents in historically underserved communities will benefit from the revitalization of the land. According to a release from the U.S. EPA, “The grants will help transform once-polluted, vacant and abandoned properties into community assets while helping to create good jobs and spur economic revitalization in overburdened communities.”
“Uptown Consortium, Inc. (UCI) is excited to be a recipient of an EPA Brownfields Multipurpose Grant. This $1M award is a critical next step to assess, clean up and advance the development of the Innovation Greenway in Avondale—part of UCI's broader effort to improve access and connectivity in Uptown Cincinnati and make it more pedestrian-friendly—benefitting the entire Southwest Ohio region,” said UCI President & CEO Beth Robinson.
With the funds, UCI will focus on removing petroleum and solid waste sites within the Innovation Greenway. The land—split into four quadrants—was once home to auto repair and towing shops, dealerships, and dry-cleaning stores, all of which dumped contaminants, including fuels, lubricants, degreasers, asbestos and dry-cleaning solvents. Since the buildings were demolished between 2013 and 2017, the land has experienced further unauthorized dumping.
The two main quadrants of concern are the southwest and northeast, which will eventually be home to mixed-use developments and the bulk of the Greenway. These two areas are estimated to create 4,483 jobs.
The Innovation Greenway has been a years-long project for UCI. The Greenway will be a five-acre greenspace with planned walking and biking trails, pocket parks, seating decks, public art, integrated workspaces and an event space for outdoor gatherings and activities. Plans also connect the Greenway to projects like the Wasson Way Trail and the CROWN (Cincinnati Riding or Walking Network) loop.
“The greenway will also serve a sustainability function through its integration into the site stormwater management plan, collecting surface run-off from roads and parcels, and directing it to the natural stream,” said UCI Director of Real Estate Franz Stansbury.
Rendering of the Innovation Greenway
UCI has invested in and completed concept development and initial planning and design, the first step of designing and engineering the greenway. UCI will continue incorporating neighborhood input at each step of the process to meet community needs.
“The goal of the Greenway is to connect the Avondale and Corryville neighborhoods with employees of the adjacent office buildings, improve residents' health and wellness, and provide a community recreation greenspace in an urban environment,” said UCI Director of Community Development Brooke Rapp.