Census data has revealed that the deep recession, plunging property values, and rising foreclosures have combined to intensify the rising vacancy rate in west Michigan. Although plagued by property vacancies, west Michigan cities utilize many approaches to encourage homeownership in the area: The cities of Grand Rapids and of Wyoming and Kent county received $11 million
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Since 1980, the Superfund Program has made considerable progress toward cleaning up contaminated sites and responding to emergencies involving hazardous substances. Green remediation is the practice of considering all environmental effects of remedy implementation and incorporating options to minimize the environmental footprints of cleanup actions. Green remediation strategies may help decrease the ecological footprint and
-> Continue reading EPA’s Superfund Green Remediation Strategy
From 1801 to 1970, the Philadelphia Navy Yard served as a landfill and incinerator, contaminated by shipbuilding and other industrial activities. Since 1970, the area has been largely abandoned, until recently, when the city decided to redevelop the area with a commitment to sustainability, reflecting Mayor Nutter’s goal of establishing the city as the greenest
-> Continue reading Converting Brownfields into Green Energy Generation Sites
In Jackson, Mississippi, BancorpSouth and the Federal Home Loan Bank of Dallas (FHLB Dallas) awarded the Voice of Calvary Ministries, Inc. (VOCM) with a $280,000 grant to further empower the VOCM’s Dream Builders Program. The grant will help the Dream Builders Program rehabilitate 28 foreclosed or vacant homes and resell them to income-qualified homebuyers. Low-
-> Continue reading Affordable Housing Program Grant Awarded to Residential Rehabilitation Efforts
In 2011, 1,000 individuals attended the New Orleans Redevelopment Authority (NORA) auction to bid on approximately 200 vacant properties and abandoned houses in the area. The event did not contain requirements such as sealed bids, commitments to live in the house for five years and minimums that would not undermine neighborhood values and received bids from
-> Continue reading Auctioning of Vacant Property Reveals that Land Banking and Regeneration is Key to Community Revitalization