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Athens Recipient of State Investments

|Special Announcements

Last week Governor DeWine and Lt. Governor Husted traveled the state to announce awards and proposals under the Ohio BUILDS Initiative, which focuses on supporting targeted solutions that impact quality of life, such as water infrastructure improvements, broadband expansion, brownfield redevelopment, the demolition of blighted buildings, and more.

Proposal for Historic Investment in Appalachia: Ohio BUILDS – Small Communities, Big Impact – A Plan for Appalachia

  • On Thursday, April 28th, 2022 Governor DeWine and Lt. Governor Husted announced details of their proposal to make a long-overdue, comprehensive investment in the Appalachian region of Ohio.
  • The $500 million investment would support local initiatives to revitalize downtown districts, enhance quality of life, and help rebuild the economies of Ohio’s 32 Appalachian counties.
  • The proposal would infuse funding into the proposal’s three priority areas of:
    1. Restoring historic downtowns
    2. Improving community health
    3. Rebuilding the local workforce
  • The proposal includes a $50 million planning phase to allow Appalachian communities and regional partnerships to develop plans that incorporate each of the three funding priorities.
    • Following the planning, $450 million in implementation grants would be invested to help communities and regional groups carry out qualifying projects to rejuvenate the region and stimulate economic growth.
  • The 32-county Appalachian region covers 39% of the state, from Clermont County through the southern and eastern portions of state, north to Ashtabula.
    • The region is historically economically disadvantaged and sparsely populated, with 124 persons per square mile compared to the statewide average of 285.
  • Ohio’s 32 contiguous Appalachian counties are: Adams, Ashtabula, Athens, Belmont, Brown, Carroll, Clermont, Columbiana, Coshocton, Gallia, Guernsey, Harrison, Highland, Hocking, Holmes, Jackson, Jefferson, Lawrence, Mahoning, Meigs, Monroe, Morgan, Muskingum, Noble, Perry, Pike, Ross, Scioto, Trumbull, Tuscarawas, Vinton, and Washington.
  • Once funding is secured, the program is to be administered through the Ohio Governor’s Office of Appalachia within the Ohio Department of Development and other agency partners.

 

Governor DeWine Awards $60 Million in Brownfield Remediation Grants

Brownfield Remediation Grants Round 1

  • On April 26th and 27th, 2022, Governor Mike DeWine and Lt. Governor Jon Husted awarded more than $60 million in funding to help local communities clean up dozens of contaminated properties to make way for future economic development.
  • As part of the new Ohio Brownfield Remediation Program, the Ohio Department of Development is providing funding for 78 projects, including approximately $54.8 million for 37 clean-up projects and $5.5 million for 41 assessment projects.
    • These projects will impact communities in 35 counties across the state.
  • Today’s $60 million grant announcement represents the first group of grants awarded as part of Round 1 of the Ohio Brownfield Remediation Program, with nearly $350 million to be invested in total across the state in coming months.
  • Funds awarded today will help to assess and clean up industrial, commercial, and institutional brownfield sites that are abandoned, idled, or underutilized due to a known or potential release of hazardous substances or petroleum.
    • Following site remediation, properties can be redeveloped to revitalize neighborhoods and attract new economic development.
  • The Ohio Brownfield Remediation Program was created with support from the Ohio General Assembly in the current operating budget.
    • Today’s awards are the first group of funds from Round 1, with another group to be announced in the near future.
  • Funding for the program is first come, first served with a $1 million set-aside for each county.
    • The Ohio Department of Development is accepting Round 2 applications until May 31st, 2022 from counties that have not yet exhausted their $1 million set-aside.
    • A full breakdown of counties with remaining funds is available on the Ohio Department of Development’s website.
    • All remaining funds not exhausted in the first two rounds will be made available statewide in Round 3, which will begin on July 1, 2022.