Its history of pollution dates back to the Civil War, but 25 years after being declared a Superfund site, Woburn's Industri-plex in Massachusetts is just about cleaned up. A retail complex there has opened recently.
"To aid and protect the Industri-plex cleanup, the EPA on Jan. 13 asked the Woburn City Council to make all the site's roads public, a process the city government had already started, said Ward 5 Alderman Darlene Mercer-Bruen.
The EPA also asked Woburn to foreclose on three Industri-plex properties owned by Chestnut Hill Realty Trust. Those three parcels sit on some of the site's most contaminated land, and the sole surviving member of the trust has no interest in holding onto the property, as it has no real commercial value, LeMay said. The EPA wants a responsible property owner who will recognize the land restrictions and protect the cleanup remedy, he said.
Nearly all of the Industri-plex property has land restrictions, but the EPA has approved 10 work plans for development there. The first was the 34-acre, $10-million Anderson Regional Transportation Center, a Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority hub that opened in 2001 and is named for Jimmy Anderson, a young child who died of cancer in 1981 and whose mother filed a lawsuit over the contamination."
FULL STORY: After 25 years, Superfund site cleanup nears final phase
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President Biden has made reducing gas prices paramount in his administration, so it was likely a surprise to hear a Republican senator last Sunday warn TV viewers that a revived and increased oil fee in the climate bill will increase their gas costs.
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Planetizen Federal Action Tracker
A weekly monitor of how Trump’s orders and actions are impacting planners and planning in America.
The state-sanctioned urbicide of Austin
People don’t kill cities. Freeways do.
US to reduce Colorado River water deliveries to Mexico
A new Colorado Treaty amendment reduces Mexico’s Colorado River water allocation by 250,000 acre feet.
5 New England states march closer to 800 megawatt wind energy project
Securing federal approval for the project may be complicated under the Trump administration, which has historically been hostile towards domestic wind power.
Baltimore to break ground on $50 million Transit Priority Project
The project will bring faster bus trips, safer streets and better bike connections to Baltimore.
Airbnb launches $250 million 'last-dollar financing' housing accelerator, makes first investment in Austin
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FREE Course: Walkable City 1: Why Walkability?
After describing his path towards focusing on walkability as the essence of good planning, Jeff Speck marches through his five principal reasons for making more walkable places.
Reinventing Malls: Planning Alchemy—Turning Gray Fields Into Gold
The course focuses on the opportunities and imperatives that shape reinvention of mall sites.
Eagle County Government
Harvard University Graduate School of Design
Nashville Planning Department
The Architects Foundation
University of Cincinnati Online
The Pocatello Development Authority
The Urban Renewal Agency of the City of Pocatello
Journal of the American Planning Association