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7BrooklynSchool_Completed2

Former Brooklyn School Site Redevelopment

2014 Small Community Impact Award Winner

Location: 15th and 16th Ave E, Hibbing, MN
Nominated by:  North St. Louis County Habitat for Humanity

The Brooklyn School project transformed a contaminated, vacant city block located in Hibbing, Minnesota, into $960,000 worth of affordable, single-family homes. The project reclaimed a blighted area of Hibbing’s Brooklyn neighborhood and filled a critical need for affordable housing options in St. Louis County (currently ranked 79th among Minnesota’s 87 counties for availability of affordable housing). The development provides homes for 28 to 30 new residents to help revitalize a small city that has been affected by a declining population as well as wages, employment, and education that are lower than state-wide medians.

When the former Brooklyn school was destroyed by fire in 1973, its charred remains were buried on site, resulting in the contamination of soils and debris with lead, other metals, and asbestos. The school was never reopened, and the site remained vacant until it was donated to North St. Louis County Habitat for Humanity in 2008.

Barr Engineering Co. helped North St. Louis County Habitat for Humanity to understand the process of brownfield redevelopment and secure funding to assess, delineate, and remediate the contaminated soils and debris. Critical financial support was provided by the Minnesota Department of Employment and Economic Development and the Iron Range Resources and Rehabilitation Board. The City of Hibbing provided grant administration services and building inspection. These financial partnerships were critical to the success of a project in a location that lacks the market drivers typically associated with brownfield redevelopment (such as large resident populations and high traffic counts), especially for affordable housing projects.

The environmental assessment and cleanup took three years. Impacted media were investigated and characterized according to contaminant type and concentration to minimize disposal costs. Four categories of waste materials were identified allowing for careful chemical characterization and segregation of wastes. This led to environmental cost savings of hundreds of thousands of dollars by both minimizing the volume of costly waste requiring off-site disposal and reusing those soils that were below SRVs. Overall, the environmental assessment and remediation project cost $465,000.

The project was ready for redevelopment when environmental assurance letters were received from the MPCA in May 2012. To date, $850,000 has been spent to develop six single family homes. Another home is currently under construction, and an eighth home is planned for 2015.

Project Financing:

  • Minnesota Department of Employment and Economic Development
  • Iron Range Resources and Rehabilitation Board
  • City of Hibbing

Project Partners:

  • North Saint Louis County Habitat for Humanity
  • Minnesota Department of Employment and Economic Development
  • Iron Range Resources and Rehabilitation Board
  • City of Hibbing
  • Minnesota Pollution Control Agency
  • Barr Engineering
  • Belair Excavating
  • Architectural Resources, Inc.
  • Bougalis and Sons Construction

2014 Case Studies

  • The PenfieldOctober 2, 2014 - 1:41 pm
  • Schmidt Artist LoftsOctober 2, 2014 - 1:32 pm
  • Rising CedarOctober 2, 2014 - 1:27 pm
  • Mississippi Watershed Management Organization Community FacilityOctober 2, 2014 - 1:12 pm
  • Metro Green Line Light RailOctober 2, 2014 - 1:00 pm
  • Former Brooklyn School Site RedevelopmentOctober 2, 2014 - 12:46 pm
  • Depot MarketplaceOctober 1, 2014 - 4:56 pm
  • Blumberg 1831October 1, 2014 - 4:43 pm
  • Bank MidwestOctober 1, 2014 - 2:58 pm
  • 222 HennepinOctober 1, 2014 - 2:44 pm

2013 Case Studies

  • El Colegio – El PatioMarch 20, 2014 - 10:35 am
  • Canal Park BrewingMarch 20, 2014 - 10:34 am
  • Robbinsdale Middle SchoolMarch 20, 2014 - 10:33 am
  • Birch Lake Business CenterMarch 20, 2014 - 10:32 am
  • Itasca Eco-Industrial ParkMarch 19, 2014 - 2:31 pm
  • Renaissance BoxMarch 19, 2014 - 2:19 pm
  • Twin LakesMarch 19, 2014 - 2:09 pm
  • Buzza LoftsMarch 19, 2014 - 2:03 pm
  • Union DepotMarch 19, 2014 - 1:54 pm
  • East Side Family ClinicMarch 19, 2014 - 1:45 pm
  • Wildwood Elementary SchoolMarch 19, 2014 - 12:36 pm

2012 Case Studies

  • Como Student Housing Soil RemediationMarch 24, 2014 - 4:09 pm
  • Clyde ParkMarch 24, 2014 - 4:00 pm
  • River of Goods – Terrybear Urns & MemorialsMarch 24, 2014 - 3:00 pm
  • SolhausMarch 24, 2014 - 2:27 pm
  • Hiawatha Public Works Maintenance FacilityMarch 24, 2014 - 2:21 pm
  • Sidney Hall & DinkydomeMarch 24, 2014 - 2:00 pm
  • HCMC Whittier ClinicMarch 20, 2014 - 10:47 am
  • Armory SquareMarch 20, 2014 - 10:32 am
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