Discover & Invest in Jefferson: Brownfield Grant Program

“Brownfields” are abandoned, idled, or underused industrial or commercial properties where expansion, redevelopment and reuse are hindered by real or perceived environmental contamination.

The EPA's Brownfield Program empowers states, communities, and other stakeholders to work together to prevent, assess, safely clean up, and sustainably reuse brownfields. A brownfield site is a real property, where the expansion, redevelopment, or reuse may be complicated by the presence or potential presence of a hazardous substance, pollutant, or contaminant. The EPA provides financial assistance to eligible applicants through five competitive grant programs: Multipurpose Grants, Assessment Grants, Revolving Loan Fund Grants, Cleanup Grants, and Environmental Workforce Development and Job Training Grants. JEDCO, Jefferson Parish, and the City of Westwego received an Assessment Grant for a targeted area on the West Bank of Jefferson Parish.

Check out the Westbank Brownfield Redevelopment Coalition's  2021 Brownfield Grant Fact Sheet.  

Phase I and Phase II environmental site assessments are provided for eligible entities at no cost, assisting with dormant or underutilized properties due to liability associated with possible contamination. Cleanup planning is also available for eligible entities.

Major vacant and underutilized sites that are located within the selected Targeted Area eligible for brownfield resources that can assist in development and redevelopment efforts, are highlighted on the map. In addition to the site's eligibility for brownfield resources, the area is also eligible for multiple federal and state tax incentive programs.

Brownfield Assessment Coalition Grant

SBA 504 Loan Program

Helps small business owner’s startup, grow, and thrive. Eligible uses include the purchase, renovation, and construction of commercial property; purchase of new or used equipment or machinery, debt refinance of fixed assets.

LDEQ’s Brownfield Cleanup Revolving Loan Fund (BCRLF) provides low interest loans with flexible terms to support the environmental cleanup of vacant and underutilized properties to get them ready for reuse.

If you are interested in applying for a Brownfield Cleanup Loan, we encourage you to complete the  BCRLF Interest Form  and submit it to  Brownfields@LA.gov . A member of our Brownfields Team will follow up with you to help determine if the BCRLF is the best fit for your project.

Voluntary Remediation Program

Provides a mechanism for property owners, potential owners or others to address contamination at properties and receive a release of liability for past contamination at the site. This release of liability flows to future owners, successors and assigns of the property as well.

LED Restoration Tax Abatement Program (Applicable to Jefferson Parish Brownfield Focus Area)

Commercial property owners and homeowners who expand, restore or improve an existing structure located in an Opportunity Zone, Downtown Development District, Economic Development District or Historic District may qualify to have the ad valorem property taxes on substantial renovations and improvements deferred for up to 10 years. Jefferson Parish has several economic development districts and Opportunity Zone areas on the east and west banks.

Federal Opportunity Zone Program (Applicable to Jefferson Parish Brownfield Focus Area)

Opportunity Zones are an economic development tool that allows people to invest in distressed areas in the United States. Their purpose is to spur economic growth and job creation in low-income communities while providing tax benefits to investors.

Through the federal Opportunity Zones Program, banks, communities and others may create Opportunity Funds to direct tax-advantaged investments to 150 federally designated Opportunity Zones in Louisiana.

 Click here  for a map of Opportunity Zones eligible for equity investments in Louisiana.

Investors and Opportunity Funds will qualify for favorable federal tax treatment through the U.S. Treasury Department, which will certify Opportunity Funds and their investments. Eligible investments will be those made for ownership of business real estate, capital and other assets by a partnership or a corporation formed for the purpose of investing in qualified Opportunity Zones property.

The primary attraction for investing in Opportunity Zones is deferring and lowering federal taxes on capital gains. For a qualified Opportunity Zones investment, capital gains taxes may be deferred the first five years; after Year 5, taxes may be cancelled on 10 percent of the original capital gains investment and deferred for the remainder; in Year 7 through Year 10, taxes may be cancelled on 15 percent of the original capital gains investment, and the remainder may be deferred through 2026; for Opportunity Zones investments lasting longer than 10 years, investors are exempt from capital gains taxes on the Opportunity Zones investment itself, in addition to the other benefits for capital gains carried into the investment.

 Section 108 Loan Guarantee Program (Section 108) 

Program is typically used to fill a gap in the financing for larger development projects. Section 108 also often provides the security necessary to catalyze investment from private lenders. The borrower (local urban or state government) can either re-loan the funds to a third-party business or developer, known as third party loans, or directly, or through sub-recipient partner, expend the funds on the project. Subrecipient partners can be non-profits or public agencies who help design and manage the project on behalf of the local government.

Program is typically used to fill a gap in the financing for larger development projects. Section 108 also often provides the security necessary to catalyze investment from private lenders. The borrower (local urban or state government) can either re-loan the funds to a third-party business or developer, known as third party loans, or directly, or through sub-recipient partner, expend the funds on the project. Subrecipient partners can be non-profits or public agencies who help design and manage the project on behalf of the local government.

Program is typically used to fill a gap in the financing for larger development projects. Section 108 also often provides the security necessary to catalyze investment from private lenders. The borrower (local urban or state government) can either re-loan the funds to a third-party business or developer, known as third party loans, or directly, or through sub-recipient partner, expend the funds on the project. Subrecipient partners can be non-profits or public agencies who help design and manage the project on behalf of the local government.

Program is typically used to fill a gap in the financing for larger development projects. Section 108 also often provides the security necessary to catalyze investment from private lenders. The borrower (local urban or state government) can either re-loan the funds to a third-party business or developer, known as third party loans, or directly, or through sub-recipient partner, expend the funds on the project. Subrecipient partners can be non-profits or public agencies who help design and manage the project on behalf of the local government.

US Department of Agriculture (USDA)

 OneRD Guarantee Loan Initiative 

Business & Industry Guaranteed Loan

Offers loan guarantees to lenders for their loans to rural businesses. Eligible uses include (but not limited to): Business conversion, enlargement, repair, modernization or development; purchase and development of land, buildings and associated infrastructure for commercial or industrial properties; the purchase and installation of machinery and equipment, supplies or inventory.

Rural Energy for America Guaranteed Loan & Grant Program (REAP)

The program provides guaranteed loan financing and grant funding to agricultural producers and rural small businesses for renewable energy systems or to make energy efficiency improvements. Agricultural producers may also apply for new energy efficient equipment and new system loans for agricultural production and processing. Funds can be used for renewable energy systems as well as for the purchase, installation, and construction of energy efficiency improvements. Loan guarantees on loans up to 75 percent of total eligible project costs and grants for up to 25 percent of total eligible projects costs or a combination is available for up to 75 percent of the total eligible project costs.

Community Facilities Guaranteed Loan Program

This program provides loan guarantees to eligible lenders to develop essential community facilities in rural areas. An essential community facility is defined as a public improvement, operated on a non-profit basis, needed for the orderly development of a rural community where the rural community is a city or town, or its equivalent county or multi-county area. The term “facility” refers to both the physical structure financed, and the resulting service provided to rural residents or rural businesses. Eligible borrowers include public bodies, non-profit organizations, and federally recognized tribes or Indian tribes on federal and state reservations. Essential community facilities include: healthcare facilities and services; public safety facilities and services; community, public, social, educational, or cultural facilities or services; transportation facilities such as streets, bridges, roads, ports, and airports; certain utility projects when not eligible for Rural Utilities Service financing, gas distribution systems, recycling and transfer centers or stations; telecommunication end-user equipment when related to public safety, medical, or educational telecommunication links when not eligible for Rural Utility Services financing; Water infrastructure facilities such as levees, dams, reservoirs, inland waterways, canals, and irrigation systems; purchase and installation of renewable energy systems for use by an essential community facility; Land acquisition and necessary site preparation including access ways and utility extensions to and throughout an industrial park site; community parks, community activity centers, and similar types of facilities.

The National Brownfields Conference, hosted by the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), serves as a premier platform for experts, policymakers, and stakeholders to convene and discuss strategies for addressing and redeveloping brownfield sites. The conference aims to foster collaboration, bringing together professionals from various disciplines to explore innovative approaches to environmental remediation and community revitalization. Attendees engage in workshops, panel discussions, and networking opportunities, gaining insights into the latest trends and best practices in brownfields redevelopment. The event plays a major role in shaping the future of environmental sustainability and promoting collective efforts to transform underutilized spaces into thriving, environmentally responsible assets for communities across the U.S.