Equitable Community Revitalization Grant
The Department of Toxic Substances Control’s Office of Brownfields Equitable Community Revitalization Grant (ECRG) will provide more than $250 million in grants to incentivize cleanup and investment in disadvantaged areas of California. The program gives California communities an unprecedented opportunity to address historic environmental injustices and set a new path for land use that will have immediate and lasting benefits, such as recreational uses (parks and other green spaces), commercial enterprises and housing.
The Center for Creative Land Recycling serves as DTSC’s Brownfield Technical Assistance Provider (B-TAP). In this role, we provide one-on-one assistance to applicants, distribute communications about CVCI grant programs, assist with organizing webinars and training, and serve as a partner to DTSC in the development of grant guidelines, applications and scoring.
The grant has been approved for three rounds of funding, two of which have already closed. In the first two rounds, more than $116 million was allocated to the identification, assessment and cleanup of sites in California communities with high rates of pollution and/or poverty.
Support for Grant Applicants
The Center for Creative Land Recycling is DTSC’s ECRG Brownfield Technical Assistance Provider and can assist you at every step of the application process, from how to get started to where to get the information you need to prepare a competitive proposal, at no cost to you!
CCLR has 25 years of experience using specialized knowledge around land reuse to help communities and their partners imagine a better future for idled lands and in finding the resources to make those new visions a reality.
A dedicated team: CCLR’s Revitalization Specialists will work one-on-one to answer your questions and guide you through the application process. They will provide support at every step of the process, from Pre-Qualifying to grant award.
Webinars and educational events: ECRG programming will position you for success. Learn about hiring a contractor, developing requests for proposals/qualifications, cost estimating, engaging with your regulatory agency, and other important information.
General redevelopment project support: CCLR can provide a range of assistance throughout the lifespan of a redevelopment project including support for site reuse planning and how to leverage other grant, loan, and assistance programs.
What We Do
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CCLR provides one-on-one application assistance and review to ECRG applicants. Application assistance is currently available to Round 1 and Round 2 grantees.
Visit our YouTube channel to watch informational videos and past webinars about the ECRG program.
Nicole Lang
Senior Program Associate
Nicole manages the Equitable Community Revitalization Grant (ECRG) and Technical Assistance Grant (TAG) programs for DTSC. An intersectional environmentalist, she is passionate about protecting both people and the planet. Previously, she managed an urban forestry program at an environmental nonprofit, overseeing the planting of over 1,200 trees and engaging 5,000 community members. Nicole is driven by the desire for her work to have a positive impact!
Ignacio Dayrit
Lead Program Consultant
Ignacio, a redevelopment expert, coordinates CCLR’s technical assistance program, drawing from his 20-year tenure with the City of Emeryville’s Redevelopment Agency. His extensive 30+-year public sector development experience encompasses financial analysis, financing, feasibility analyses, project and program management, and urban design. Instrumental in the city’s redevelopment of blighted, contaminated property, Ignacio holds degrees in Architecture and City Planning.
Jim Bergdoll, AICP
Brownfield Revitalization Specialist
Jim has an extensive career facilitating redevelopment projects and programs through real estate, affordable housing, city planning, financing, and design with Community Development departments of a county and a mid-size suburban City and the Planning Department of San Francisco. He has served as the Housing Development Director for two non-profit organizations and developed housing on brownfields. He enjoys providing technical assistance, planning, and state and federal grant support.
Sebastian Harrison
Brownfield Revitalization Specialist
Sebastian joined CCLR with 7 years of experience in Chemical Industry helping to clean-up and redevelop contaminated sites. He has expertise in sustainability, including brownfield revitalization, waste management, environmental policy, solar implementation, and life cycle analysis. He played a key role in managing the Equitable Community Revitalization Grant, aiding applicants and grantees in planning and executing brownfield projects. Sebastian assists in designing budgets aligned with remediation success and provides expertise on Sustainable Remediation.
Janet Naito
Brownfield Revitalization Specialist
Janet Naito is a Brownfield Revitalization Specialist and a member of the CCLR BTAP team dedicated to bringing applicants through the ECRG grant process. Janet has over 30 years of experience working with local, State and Federal government agencies, communities and private stakeholders to restore properties for productive use. Prior to joining CCLR, she managed a branch within the California Department of Toxic Substances Control’s Brownfields and Environmental Restoration Program.
