Revitalizations of Downtowns

Southern Windsor County RPC

Southern Windsor County Regional Planning Commission (RPC) has been cleaning and redeveloping brownfields since 1999. Most of the sites are located in downtown areas and are part of revitalization efforts. Some sites have been completed, while others are in process as a result of complications related to managing risk and liability. Some site owners may be reluctant to become involved in assessment or cleanup.

The RPC partnered with the town of Windsor, Springfield Regional Development Corporation, the Burnham Estate, Country Real Estate and Lyme Investment Corporation to assess and clean up a property that once housed a dump site, and now houses an office building. An accounting firm is now located at that site, employing at least eight people. The Burnham site had a quick turnaround due to the involvement of a realtor and the estate’s executor. The executor funded the site assessment. Once the assessment was complete and the property received a letter of no further action from the state brownfields program, the site promptly sold.

Working with the state agency presented some challenges in the past, but conditions have improved. The Redevelopment of Contaminated Properties Program (RCPP) could be adjusted to encourage more private sector involvement, according to Becky Basch, Assistant Director at Southern Windsor County RPC. “Developers are often uninterested because of liability issues. The state takes on a lot of risk through the RCPP program, but it lacks the insurance to manage the risk. As a result, testing and cleanup are conservative.” Despite structural challenges, Southern Windsor County RPC is producing results.

Along with greater numbers of jobs, the results of completed brownfields projects in the region can be seen in the increased interest on the part of developers in downtown properties, rising property values and downtown revitalization.