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Oakland Brownfield Initiative
Brownfield Redevelopment Authority (OCBRA):
On November 29, 2001 the Oakland County Board of Commissioners approved the creation of the Oakland County Brownfield Redevelopment Authority (OCBRA), and in doing so established the initial OCBRA Board and the Bylaws in which all aspects of the OCBRA will follow. The OCBRA meets on a regular basis to continue its work on a number of Brownfield redevelopments under consideration.
Under state law, a Brownfield Redevelopment Authority is the way to access the following financing incentives.
Single-Business Tax (SBT) Credit:
To acquire a SBT credit, one must demonstrate a need for incentive to re-use the site due to market conditions or other business factors, and also the developer must articulate financial need for the credit.
The SBTs are subdivided into Large and Small credits.
A Large SBT Credit must be approved by the Michigan Economic Growth Authority (MEGA) Board and are in excess of $1 million dollars. Fifteen of these large credits are granted per year, three of which can be in a non-core community (for a list of core-communities please see "*" at the bottom of this page).
A Small SBT Credit must be approved by the MEGA Chair and cannot exceed $1 million. Up to $30 million in these credits are granted each year.
Tax increment financing (TIF) must be pursued for all eligible activities. (See below for more details on TIF.)
Note: Please check back on how the new Michigan Business Tax (MBT) will effect the Brownfield program.
Tax Increment Financing (TIF):
TIF reimburses developers for eligible remediation activities as identified in the Brownfield and 381 work plans. TIF captures tax rolls from local and state governmental bodies after a 381 work plan has been approved. Eligible activities are subdivided into those geared toward core and non-core communities.
In core communities, this financing is available for Baseline Environmental Assessment (BEA), Due Care, and additional response activities. Other eligible activities for core communities include public infrastructure, demolition, site preparation and lead and asbestos abatement.
In non-core communities the eligible activities are limited to BEAs, Due Care, and additional response activities.
Once eligible activities have been identified, an Act 381 Work Plan must be prepared and submitted for approval by the Michigan Department of Environmental Quality (MDEQ).
In 2005, Oakland County was awarded a $400,000 Assessment Grant to be used to conduct Environmental Assessment activities for Brownfield properties located through out Oakland County. (Two hundred thousand dollars ($200,000) will be used to conduct work on Hazardous Substances sites and the other $200,000 will be used to conduct work on Petroleum sites.)
Oakland County awards these monies to developers to pay for portions of the environmental investigations needed for a specific site. These grant dollars help the developer supplement the costs of needed investigation activities.
Oakland County Brownfield Remediation Loan Fund: Oakland County was awarded a supplemental grant from the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (USEPA) in the amount of $394,350 in 2004. An application was also been made to the USEPA to authorize transition of $155,650 to this grant from our original USEPA grant funding, for a grant total of $550,000. Four hundred and forty thousand dollars ($440,000) of these monies are to be used for loan(s) directed at site clean up. Terms and conditions of these loans are negotiable.
Contact Information
Bradley Hansen, Environmental Program Coordinator
Oakland County Waste Resource Management
2100 Pontiac Lake Rd.
Waterford, MI 48328
248-858-8073
hansenb@oakgov.com
*Core-communities (reference from above)
Ferndale Hazel Park Oak Park Pontiac Royal Oak Township Southfield
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