EPA recognizes Macon-Bibb with $400,000 grant

The once-bustling 7th Street corridor, a now more desolate version of its former self, has a gleam of hope for future redevelopment.

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency presented a $400,000 brownfields assessment grant to Macon-Bibb County to determine if empty properties along 7th Street show evidence of pollutants or are “tainted,” as Mayor Robert Reichert called it.

“Help was on the horizon, and here came the cavalry,” Reichert said at the grant ceremony Thursday afternoon held at Sanco Sanitary Solutions on 1001 7th St.

Half of the grant will be dedicated to evaluating the presence of hazardous substances, and the other $200,000 will be spent measuring petroleum levels in the soil.

But not all properties labeled as brownfields are actually contaminated, said Beth Blalock of the Georgia Department of Natural Resources Environmental Protection Division.

In addition to testing contamination levels in soil samples, grant funds also could be used to promote community involvement and plan clean-up activities.

The grant, which was submitted by the Middle Georgia Regional Commission, was the only one awarded in Georgia.

Out of eight states in the Southeast, Macon-Bibb’s grant was one of 22 recognized from a pool of 94 applicants.

Although still unsure how the grant will be allocated, Reichert said he hopes to be able to spread the money to include assessments of properties in the Second Street corridor and Allied Industrial Park in addition to 7th Street.

Heather McTeer Toney, EPA regional administrator and former mayor of Greenville, Mississippi, said it is a very exciting time for the community because it means jobs.

Although collaborations are still in the works, the government is looking to partner with the Macon Arts Alliance and students from Mercer University.

It is almost entirely a partnership between different organizations, Toney said. And the grant can become empowering to a community, she added.

Garry Williams, president of Sanco Sanitary Solutions, said his family has seen the value of being on 7th Street.

Despite relocating to three different addresses, Sanco has been located on the same street since 1940.

Williams said he has never dreamed of moving the family-owned and operated chemical company to another spot in town and that he is grateful for the resources being committed to this area.

“From my perspective, as a business owner, it’s always made more sense to fill in empty spaces before developing further out,” Williams said.

To contact writer Conner Wood, call 744-4489.

This story was originally published June 18, 2015 at 11:58 AM with the headline "EPA recognizes Macon-Bibb with $400,000 grant ."