Over the past eight years, the city of Hamilton has been the “poster child” of being able to obtain millions from the state to fund brownfield projects clean-up projects.

For the past several years, the Clean Ohio program has granted Butler County with $18.8 million of grant funding to clean up old industrial sites for reuse, according to the Department of Development. The aim is to create $219.5 million in new investments and creating 259 jobs. Of that amount, the city has received nearly $11 million of those funds.

Last week, the state announced a streamlined approval process for funding brownfield projects that would create a single brownfield incentive program, combining Clean Ohio’s Revitalization Fund and Assistance Fund, which will be managed through a collaboration of the Ohio Development Service Agency’s Office of Redevelopment, JobsOhio and the Clean Ohio Council. All brownfield project requests will begin with JobsOhio and its regional network partners.

“This new structure will streamline the process for communities interested in Clean Ohio assistance,” said Christiane Schmenk, director of the Ohio Development Services Agency. “As we transition into this new model, our commitment remains the same. We want to provide outstanding customer service, create jobs and build strong communities making Ohio a place everyone can succeed.”

Clean Ohio funding assists projects in environmental assessment, acquiring property, demolishing structures, conducting environmental cleanup and improving infrastructure. Funding requests will be accepted by JobsOhio and its regional network partners, who will then evaluate a project’s economic benefits. Clean Ohio grant recommendations will then be referred to the Director of the Development Clean Ohio Council for review and potential approval.

In addition to the streamlined process, the Council announced that grant funding will be available on a rolling cycle, as opposed to having specific funding rounds. Up to $3 million will be available per project for cleanup activities and $200,000 per project will be available for environmental assessment activities. Additional brownfield funding is available through the Brownfield Loan Program, which is administered by the Ohio Development Services Agency’s Office of Redevelopment.

JobsOhio is accepting funding requests for the $15 million grant allocation. Funding may include a grant and loan combination, utilizing the brownfield grant funding and the Brownfield Loan Program.

Last year, when this was being proposed, some local officials felt changing the program might dissuade developers from purchasing these types of properties for reinvestment.