Brownfield Site Assessment Grant for Local Governments

• Grant Highlights, Media (e.g. News Releases) & Round Specific Information
• Grant Basics & Time Line
• Application & Instructions
• Reimbursement Materials & Other Information for Grantees 
• Statutes & Codes
• Contacts 

Grant Basics & Time Line

The Brownfield Site Assessment Grant (SAG) is a DNR program that helps local governments conduct initial activities and investigations of known or suspected environmentally contaminated property.

Eligible Applicants
A city, village, town, county, redevelopment authority, community development authority, or housing authority is eligible to complete an application for a grant.

Eligible Activities
This money can fund:

• Phase I Environmental Site Assessments 
• Phase II Environmental Site Assessments 
• Site Investigations 
• Demolition 
• Asbestos removal associated with demolition 
• Removal of abandoned containers 
• Removal of Underground Storage Tanks (USTs) 

Please Note: These funds can not be used for environmental cleanup activities.

Looking for more information?

• SAG Fact Sheet [PDF, 154KB]
• Eligible Grant Activities & Match Cost Table [PDF, 33KB] - excerpt from SAG application instructions.
• Grant Highlights, Media (e.g. News Releases) & Round Specific Information
  

SAG Timeline

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Application & Instructions

Applications for Round 10 are due November 3, 2008.

• Site Assessment Grant Application (Form 4400-217) [PDF, 724KB] - This form is now a fillable PDF. It was created in Adobe Acrobat 8 Pro, and can only be saved in this version.
• Site Assessment Grant Application Instructions (RR-678) [PDF, 614KB]
• Used Bonus Points (Round 1-9) [PDF, 22KB]
• Municipal Resolution [DOC, 28KB]

Application Tips

Before you prepare an application, please read the entire application form and instructions. If you have any questions about preparing an application, or whether your site is eligible and ready for funding, please contact the RR Program’s land recycling specialist at the bottom of this web page.

To help potential applicants avoid common pitfalls, the following list highlights several common problems that have occurred in past grant rounds.

• Make Sure Your Site Is A Brownfield. Don’t submit sites that have not been commercial or industrial properties (e.g. schools, vacant lots, etc.). Please document why you think contamination exists and why it is impacting redevelopment.
• Be Ready To Go. Do not apply for a grant unless you’re “Ready To Go” and expect to complete the project within one year. All parties involved with a project (e.g. the property owner, developer, local government, consultant, etc.) should work together on the project plans so the grant activities can begin soon after the grant is awarded.
• Get Access To The Property. Do not apply for a grant unless you either have access to the property to conduct all grant and match activities, or you will clearly be able to secure access to the property to conduct activities within 60 days of DNR notifying you about receiving SAG funding. You will need to prove, through written documentation, that you have legal access to do ALL activities listed in your application. An example is located within the grant instructions.
• Prepare A Detailed, Accurate Budget. Prepare a project budget based on detailed estimates of the costs to conduct the proposed activities. In some cases, after local governments have been awarded grants, the actual work cost significantly less than the budget, resulting in unused grant funds which the DNR may not be able to award to another community. If you are uncertain about which activities you need SAG funding for, or how much some activities cost, you may want to request additional grants funds in future SAG rounds for those activities.
• Start Working On Your Community’s Resolution Now. Each SAG applicant must submit a resolution approved by the local governing body (e.g. common council, county board, etc.) within 30 days after the application deadline. Municipal Resolutions are due December 3, 2008. Late resolutions will not be accepted. Because it may take some time for your local governing body to approve the resolution, you should start working on the resolution immediately. The resolution must be adopted by the local governing body and an authorized representative must be identified – also, the representative must be an official or employee of the local government (not a consultant). It is preferred that you use the Example Municipal Resolution. This way you don’t leave out any pertinent information.
• Have Tax Delinquent Information Ready. For tax delinquent sites, you must provide tax certificate numbers for the properties if you want to claim the property is delinquent – your county treasurer can provide this information. Also, if you intend to cancel delinquent property taxes and use that as match, this must occur during the grant period, and is usually done when the county takes the tax deed to the property.
• Recommendations for Demolition and/or Asbestos Abatement. If you are planning to conduct demolition and/or asbestos abatement, see the RR program’s demolition web page and the recommendation included on page 8 of the SAG application instructions (RR-678) [PDF, 230KB] for useful resources and information.

Want to know about previous SAG grant rounds? See our Grant Highlights, Media (e.g. News Releases) & Round Specific Information page.

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Reimbursement Materials & Other Information for Grantees

• Grant Procedures and Reimbursement Instructions [PDF, 52KB]

Reimbursement Materials

In order to be reimbursed, grantees must complete and submit the following pieces of information to the DNR grant manager:

• Reimbursement Claim Form & Worksheet (Form 4400-222) [PDF, 315KB] - This form is now a fillable PDF. It was created in Adobe Acrobat 8 Pro, and can only be saved in this version.
• Brownfield Site Assessment Grant Program Final Report (Form 4400-223) [PDF, 121KB] - Request for final reimbursement must be accompanied by the final report. This form is now a fillable PDF. It was created in Adobe Acrobat 8 Pro, and can only be saved in this version.

The following Word document is an example of the documentation needed when cancellation of delinquent property taxes is claimed as matching funds for a SAG reimbursement request. To use this document, click on the link and then save the letter to your own computer.

• Back Taxes Cancellation Example Letter [DOC, 25KB]

Other Forms

• SAG Progress Report (Form 4400-244) [PDF, 67KB] - Local governments that receive grants should use this form to provide written progress reports to the DNR. See Grant Procedures and Reimbursement Instructions [PDF, 52KB] for more information.

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Statutes and Codes

• Wisconsin Administrative Code - NR 168
• Wisconsin Statute - s. 292.75
• Recent SAG Rule Changes

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Contacts

If you have general questions about the SAG program, please contact Shelley Fox (608.266.5798).

If you have questions about specific sites, or about how to fill out the application, please contact the regional land recycling staff person in your area: view region map

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For more information on this specific page, contact:

Shelley Fox
(608.266.5798)