Lehigh County Receives $900,000 for Asbestos Cleanup

Officials in Lehigh County, Pennsylvania, received a grant of $900,000 from the US Environmental Protection Agency last week. As part of the federal government's economic stimulus package, the grant was offered to the county to help in asbestos cleanup efforts for the now-empty Bethlehem Steel Corporation's headquarters. A major renovation project is underway for the twenty-one-story Martin Tower site, the tallest building in the area, that involves creating residential and retail spaces for future occupancy. Lewis Ronca and Norton Herrick, the developers in charge of the project, have plans to transform the former corporate office building into a conglomeration of apartments, retail outlets, office spaces, and parking garage.

Last month, the city council of Bethlehem approved acceptance of a grant from the state government for the project, which totaled $1.25 million.

The area has suffered due to the bankruptcy of Bethlehem Steel in 2001 and its sale in 2003 as well as the global economic downturn last year. The renovation project on the building is estimated to cost in excess of $150 million. The level of asbestos contamination in the building was so extensive that the asbestos removal and remediation portion of the project is estimated to run up to almost $7.5 million by itself. Lehigh County leaders understood that they would need federal funding to cover the costs of such a massive cleanup effort. Cindy Feinberg, the economic development director for Lehigh County, said that the asbestos removal was the biggest and most substantial portion of the remodeling project.

Lehigh County Executive and former mayor of Bethlehem Don Cunningham said that plans for a quick turnaround of the remodeling project, including the asbestos remediation, are an important of re-opening the building for other commercial uses and re-establishing the local property tax base and stimulating new job opportunities. According to Cunningham, the building is also an area landmark and its renovation would add both a psychological and a financial boost for Lehigh Valley residents. Current Bethlehem mayor John Callahan was also pleased with the approval of the grants. He stated how such grants are "critical" to the success of any renovation project involving building reuse and asbestos removal.

The EPA also offered a grant of $300,000 to nearby Northampton County for asbestos remediation and cleanup efforts at a site the former site of the Bethlehem Steel foundry. Plans are underway to renovate the building into a performing arts center and art film house. The project is estimated to cost up to $25 million, with over $14 million coming from local, state and federal government funding. Julie Benjamin, the campaign director for the ArtsQuest SteelStacks center, welcomed the good news and says that the project is "moving full steam ahead".

An EPA spokesman said that both counties were selected for the grants because officials had exhibited the knowledge and experience needed to help their area through useful financing programs for former industrial sites currently targeted for redevelopment and reuse. The effort behind the grants is to reclaim such former industrial sites known as "brownfields" for uses that are both more environmentally safe and economically prosperous.

Source: The McCall Company, Lehigh Valley Live

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