Contacts:
Tony Hozeny, Department of Commerce, 608-267-9661
Ethnie Groves, Office of the Governor, 608-261-2156
Award Will Help City Redevelop Contaminated Property into
Modern Industrial Park; Project is Expected to Create 200 New Jobs
RACINE – Governor Jim Doyle announced today a $550,000
Department of Commerce award to the City of Racine to clean up a
contaminated 14-acre brownfields site and help create up to 200 new jobs for
southeastern Wisconsin. The Governor made the announcement at the Racine
City Hall.
“With this grant, we will help the City of Racine clean up
this contaminated brownfields site and develop a modern industrial park that
is expected to create 200 jobs for the community,” Governor Doyle said. “I
am pleased that the state is able to help Racine revitalize its downtown.”
“I want to thank Governor Doyle and the Department of
Commerce for their support of this project,” said Racine Mayor Gary Becker.
“It is this type of leadership and vision from the Governor that will keep
Racine and Wisconsin moving ahead to be able to help private industry expand
and create jobs for our citizens.”
The grant will help clean up a 14-acre site in Racine that
was used by the Jacobsen Textron Company for 35 years to manufacture lawn
care equipment. The City of Racine purchased the land in 2002 and will
create a modern industrial park within the city that will yield as many as
four industrial sites. The project includes demolishing and improving the
infrastructure of the site in order to make way for the new industrial
sites. The project is expected to create 200 jobs and the total project
investment is $4.6 million.
The grant is part of Commerce’s Brownfields Program, which
provides grants to municipalities, local development corporations, and the
private sector to support assessment, remediation, and return of
contaminated lands to productive use. Brownfields are abandoned, idle, or
underused industrial or commercial properties where redevelopment is
hindered by real or perceived contamination.
