Saving valuable NY land one brownfield at a time.

Sustainable development applies not only to green buildings, but also to the sites they're constructed on. As the supply of undeveloped land diminishes, government officials and developers are finding more ways to re-use sites, including brownfields, that may have contamination issues. Cleaning up and building on a brownfield can be a complicated process, but it benefits the real estate industry by bringing underutilized properties back on the market and supports the principles of sustainable development by conserving resources and removing unsafe, unattractive blights from the landscape.

New York State's current brownfields regulations offer big incentives to redevelop these sites, including liability protection and tax credits. While these incentives can be very attractive to developers--in some cases the tax incentives can exceed the entire cost of the cleanup--entering a formal Brownfield Cleanup Agreement is not the best choice for every site. Depending on a project's budget, time frame and community outlook, working under a state or local spill program could make more sense. But for some sites, a BCA offers the most comprehensive and cost-effective approach for brownfield redevelopment.

"Time is the biggest issue with a Brownfield Cleanup Agreement," says Marc Godick, of AKRF, an environmental consulting firm that's directing two of the biggest brownfield projects being implemented in New York City: the AvalonBay Communities residential development at Queens West and the Muss mixed-use development on the Flushing waterfront. While a remediation plan can be approved and implemented in a few months under some other programs, it can take more than a year under a formal BCA.

For the Muss Flushing property, which was formerly used for electric transformer storage and repairs, it took AKRF five years to fully inspect the site, create a remediation plan, negotiate with NYSDEC and conduct public outreach. The site's cleanup is now underway, and by 2009 it will be redeveloped by Muss with a $600-million retail and residential complex.

"This is a perfect example of a site that could remain a blight on the neighborhood without the brownfields program," says Godick.

"It's a complicated cleanup job and it's taking a long time. But it will be worth the wait to see this project revitalize the waterfront and the local economy."

Community relations are also important when working under a BCA, which requires formal public review. Communities are often concerned about risks that could occur while the cleanup is underway and additional outreach in the form of public meetings or consultation with neighborhood organizations may be necessary to make sure their issues are addressed. Though potentially time-consuming, this helps developers build trust and acceptance with the community.

For the AvalonBay site at Queens West, odors are a major concern to the surrounding neighborhood, which includes a school, a daycare center and residences. To address this issue remediation work is being conducted under a tent nearly the size of a football field to maintain good quality of life for neighbors.

"Respecting the neighborhood is always a good choice for developers," Godick explains. "With the brownfields program, it's a question of whether it makes sense to go through a more exhaustive public and regulatory review process."

NYSDEC was very cooperative in "working with AvalonBay and AKRF to approve the remediation plan in an expedited manner, with approval granted in less than a year after the investigation was initiated in early 2005.

Because New York State's brownfield program is relatively new, regulators, developers and consultants like AKRF are learning on their feet. Each BCA is negotiated individually with NYSDEC, so no two projects are alike. In addition, even though the law was signed in 2003, the long time frames for planning and approval mean that major BCAs like Muss' Flushing and AvalonBay's Queens West sites are only now being implemented. When deciding whether to do cleanup under a BCA or some other program, developers and their advisors need to think carefully about whether the substantial incentives of a BCA are worth the tradeoffs. This requires a clear understanding of the site's condition, familiarity with the regulations and the ability to move a project through the public and regulatory approval processes. For complicated sites that will hold their value during a longer planning and remediation process, a BCA can give developers a safe and profitable route for redevelopment.

The success of the brownfield program stems from its recognition that developers can be powerful agents for positive change and makes them partners in environmental cleanup.