Environmental Site Assessment Grants

About

If you are buying commercial or industrial property in the City of Grand Rapids, you should invest in environmental-related assessments when acquiring property. These assessments can be expensive and should be completed before acquiring property so you know what you're dealing with, and don't put yourself or your company at risk. Completing these assessments at the right time can help protect you from future liabilities, and are usually required by lenders for real estate or business financing. The Grand Rapids Brownfield Redevelopment Authority (BRA), through the Local Brownfield Revolving Fund (LBRF), has set aside Environmental Site Assessment (ESA) grant funds to help businesses and developers offset these costs. To be eligible for a grant, you must have recently purchased the property (in the last 45 days) or have a legally binding purchase agreement. 

ESA grants can be used to pay for some or all of the following costs:

  • Phase I and II Environmental Assessments
  • Baseline Environmental Assessment
  • Hazardous Material Surveys
  • Due Care Planning (take measures to prevent unacceptable exposures to hazardous substances or create conditions that worsen the contamination)

Grant Prioritization

The types of projects listed below will be given priority for ESA grant funding.

  • Projects being proposed by first-time developers
  • Projects or businesses located in the Neighborhoods of Focus
  • Projects that will help retain or grow existing businesses
  • Projects that will help attract new businesses to Grand Rapids

Apply

If you would like to apply for an ESA grant, call us at 616-456-3462 or email us at econdevshrd@grcity.us to discuss your project. If your project qualifies, you can apply online by clicking one of the links below. If you would like a paper copy of the application to fill out, please contact the Economic Development office at the phone number or email above.

Online Application

Online Application (Spanish) 

Resources