Revitalizing Communities Through Redevelopment: County Brownfields Primer

Nearly two out of every three counties (64 percent) have an identified brownfield property. Cook County, Ill. alone has more than 600 properties, the most of any county with a brownfield site, with the median number of sites for brownfield counties reaching five properties. These sites are concentrated in rust-belt and other former industrial- heavy regions of the country. With more than 450,000 total estimated sites, brownfields impact every county to varying degrees.

Brownfield properties can come in many shapes and sizes. Often, they are thought of as large abandoned industrial complexes, but it is more common for brownfield sites to be smaller properties like former gas stations, dry cleaners or automotive repair garages. Brownfield sites can also be agricultural, residential, railroad sites, chemical manufacturing plants or public buildings.

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