Tucson Standard

Tucson received $1 million from the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and President Joe Biden's infrastructure plan to rehabilitate brownfields in the city.

The blighted areas were contaminated but "can be brought back to life through remediation," according to KOLD. Areas of Tucson that were previously restored include the Caterpillar headquarters on Tucson's west side. The location, a former city garbage dump, once contained hazardous materials. Remediation of the area cost approximately $8 million.

"Many times, there are big tracts of land where we can build affordable homes, that we can build parks in, [where] we can build small areas of small business, to be able to put those pieces of land to work," Tucson Mayor Regina Romero told KOLD.

Martha Guzman, a regional administrator for the EPA, spoke about the project as well.

"There's just endless amounts of ways to be creative, and that's why we give money to local governments," she said. "They know what the community needs and they know where the investments are needed."

The $1 million grant is the largest award that the EPA has given to the city to clean brownfields, KOLD reported. Tucson received the funds because city officials have spent money wisely in the past.

The funds will be used to clean up the so-called Thrive in the 05 area near Oracle and Grant Roads, according to KOLD. City officials believe the area has "high economic potential but has been neglected and [is] in need of clean-up." The funding also includes $500,000 for renovations in Cochise County.

"[This is needed] especially in the urban core and rural communities that have been neglected and need this revitalization infrastructure investment to bring back the local economy and communities,” Guzman said.