title
APPROVE A RESOLUTION TO ACCEPT AND APPROPRIATE BROWNFIELDS COMMUNITY-WIDE ASSESSMENT GRANT FUNDING FROM THE UNITED STATES ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY
recommended action
RECOMMENDATION
It is recommended that the City Council approve a resolution to:
1. Authorize the City Manager to accept and appropriate grant funding from the United States Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) in the amount of $500,000 for the FY 2026 Brownfields Community-Wide Assessment Grant Program; and
2. Authorize the City Manager to take appropriate and necessary actions to carry out the purpose and intent of this resolution including executing, on behalf of the City of Stockton, all required contracts or agreements with the granting agency, provide additional information and furnish such documents as may be required, execute all documents and amendments or extensions pertaining to the grant project, and make all required appropriations in compliance with and for the purposes stated in the Project Agreement.
body
Summary
In January 2026, the Economic Development Department submitted an application to EPA requesting $500,000 under its FY 2026 Brownfields Community-Wide Assessment Grant Program. The City was subsequently selected to receive the grant award. Grant funds will support environmental assessment and reuse planning activities within three priority Target Areas: South Airport Way, Little Manila/Gleason Park, and the North Shore Waterfront. These areas contain vacant, underutilized, and potentially contaminated properties that can present barriers to redevelopment and productive reuse (Attachment A - Target Areas).
The grant will build upon the City’s existing Brownfields Program and previous EPA-funded assessment activities. Funding will be used for project management and reporting, community outreach, environmental site assessments, and remediation and reuse planning. The project is intended to improve the City’s understanding of environmental conditions at eligible brownfield properties and provide technical information to support future cleanup, redevelopment, and reuse decisions.
DISCUSSION
Background
The City has previously utilized EPA Brownfields grant funding to identify, assess, and plan for the reuse of brownfield properties. In 2018, the City received an EPA Brownfields Coalition Community-Wide Assessment Grant that supported brownfields assessment and planning activities in the downtown and waterfront areas.
The FY 2026 Assessment Grant will continue this work while focusing on three Target Areas identified in the City’s application. Priority properties include sites along South Airport Way, Mormon Slough within the Little Manila/Gleason Park area, and 260 West Fremont Street within the North Shore Waterfront area. The project also complements existing City planning initiatives, including the Housing Action Plan, Neighborhood Action Plans, forthcoming Downtown Master Plan, and 2025-2029 HUD Consolidated Plan.
Present Situation
EPA has awarded the City $500,000 for implementation of the FY 2026 Brownfields Community-Wide Assessment Grant. The City and EPA have developed a Work Plan establishing the activities and deliverables to be completed with the grant funding. The Work Plan includes four primary tasks:
• Project Management and Reporting: Grant administration; reporting; Assessment, Cleanup and Redevelopment Exchange System (ACRES) database updates; and project closeout.
• Community Outreach: Updating the Community Involvement Plan; convening a Brownfields Advisory Committee; conducting community outreach meetings; and preparing public information materials.
• Phase I/II Environmental Site Assessments: Perform approximately fifteen (15) Phase I Environmental Site Assessments (ESA); up to eight (8) Phase II ESAs; regulated building material surveys; and associated quality assurance and sampling documents.
• Remediation and Reuse Planning: Perform activities that could include, but are not limited to, an area wide-reuse plan, site-specific reuse planning, and additional site-specific remediation and/or reuse planning documents, including Analyses of Brownfields Cleanup Alternatives, as appropriate.
The assessment activities will allow the City to evaluate environmental conditions at eligible properties, reduce information gaps associated with potential contamination, prioritize sites for future cleanup and redevelopment activities, and better position properties for future federal, state, local, and private funding opportunities.
Council approval of the recommended actions will authorize acceptance of the EPA grant and establish the necessary budget appropriations to begin implementation of the approved Work Plan.
FINANCIAL SUMMARY
The grant program does not require matching funds, and there will be no impact to the City’s General Fund. Funds will be appropriated in the City Manager’s Special Grants Fund - Reimbursement, General Administrative Division.
Attachment A - Target Areas