Letter of support to Hawaii's Senator Schatz re the Brownfields Utilization, Investment, and Local Development (BUILD) Act of 2013, which would amend and reauthorize the brownfields funding authority for federal brownfields grant programs.

1. NElL ABERCROMBIE
OFFICE OF PLANNING GOVERNOR
JESSE K. SOUKI
STATE OF HAWAII DIRECTOR
OFFICE OF PLANNING
235 South Beretania Street, 6th Floor, Honolulu, Hawaii 96813 Telephone: (808) 587-2846
Mailing Address: P.O. Box 2359, Honolulu, Hawaii 96804 Fax: (808) 587-2824
Web: http:/Ihawaii.govldbedtlop/
Ref. No. P-13928
March 21, 2013
The Honorable Brian Schatz
United State Senate
722 Hart Senate Office Building
Washington, D.C. 20510
Dear Senator Schatz:
I am writing to express my strong support for S. 491, the Brownfields Utilization,
Investment, and Local Development (BUILD) Act of 2013, which would amend and reauthorize
the brownfields funding authority for federal brownfields grant programs.
The BUILD Act would help communities clean up and redevelop land that today sits
contaminated and abandoned. These sites, known as "brownfields," are in nearly every
community across the country.
In Hawaii, "[t]he state Department of Health has investigated more than 1,700 sites of
potential contamination, nearly half of which merited further action," as reported by Hawaii
Business Magazine, in an interview with the State Department of Health in 2011. See "Toxic
Waste in Hawaii: How brownfields and contaminated sites affect development," Hawaii
Business Magazine, June 2011, available at http://www.hawaiibusiness.com/Hawaii-
Business/June-201 l/Toxic-Waste-in-Hawaii/. The Department of Health program that conducts
these investigations and oversees the State's brownfields program is largely funded by a U.S.
Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) State Response Program grant, which is included for
reauthorization under the BUILD Act.
Hawaii has benefitted directly from several brownfields grants under prior federal
brownfields authorization acts. U.S. EPA brownfields funds were instrumental in clearing the
way for the development of the John A. Burns School of Medicine, Kakaako Waterfront Park,
and the Hawaii Children's Discovery Center in Kakaako. U.S. EPA brownfields grant funds
have been the primary source of funds for the site investigation studies and site remediation
activities underway in conjunction with the Department of Hawaiian Home Lands' (DHHL) East
Kapolei II master-planned community, which when complete will be home to almost 2,000
households of DHHL beneficiaries.
Cleaning up brownfield sites is incredibly beneficial to both local economies and the
environment. Every $1 of federal funds invested in brownfields redevelopment leverages $18 in
total investment, and redeveloping one acre of contaminated land creates an average of 10 jobs.

2. The Honorable Brian Schatz
Page 2
March 21, 2013
Cleanup and redevelopment can increase surrounding property values by as much as 15
percent--and on Oahu, we have seen much higher increases in assessed values as a result of
brownfields redevelopment. Redeveloping a one-acre brownfield site is also estimated to
conserve 4.5 acres of undeveloped green space.
Brownfields redevelopment can be complicated and expensive; however, that is why
communities need the BUILD Act. The Act would help communities overcome the initial
hurdles to brownfield redevelopment and allow them to create lasting economic engines for
decades to come.
Brownfield redevelopment benefits communities and provides excellent return on
taxpayer investment, which is why I strongly urge you to support the BUILD Act of 2013.
Thank you for your time and consideration.
c: The Honorable Neil Abercrombie, Governor
Mr. Alex Dodds, Smart Growth America

3. NElL ABERCROMBIE
OFFICE OF PLANNING GOVERNOR
JESSE K. SOUKI
STATE OF HAWAII DIRECTOR
OFFICE OF PLANNING
235 South Beretania Street, 6th Floor, Honolulu, Hawaii 96813 Telephone: (808) 587-2846
Mailing Address: P.O. Box 2359, Honolulu, Hawaii 96804 Fax: (808) 587-2824
Web: http:llhawaii.gov/dbedtlop/
Ref. No. P-13928
March 21, 2013
The Honorable Mazie K. Hirono
United States Senate
B-40E Dirksen Senate Office Building
Washington, D.C. 20510
Dear Senator Hirono:
I am writing to express my strong support for S. 491, the Brownfields Utilization,
Investment, and Local Development (BUILD) Act of 2013, which would amend and reauthorize
the brownfields funding authority for federal brownfields grant programs.
The BUILD Act would help communities clean up and redevelop land that today sits
contaminated and abandoned. These sites, known as "brownfields," are in nearly every
community across the country.
In Hawaii, "[t]he state Department of Health has investigated more than 1,700 sites of
potential contamination, nearly half of which merited further action," as reported by Hawaii
Business Magazine, in an interview with the State Department of Health in 2011. See "Toxic
Waste in Hawaii: How brownfields and contaminated sites affect development," Hawaii
Business Magazine, June 2011, available at http://www.hawaiibusiness.com/Hawaii-
Business/June-201 I/Toxic-Waste-in-Hawaii/. The Department of Health program that conducts
these investigations and oversees the State's brownfields program is largely funded by a U.S.
Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) State Response Program grant, which is included for
reauthorization under the BUILD Act.
Hawaii has benefitted directly from several brownfields grants under prior federal
brownfields authorization acts. U.S. EPA brownfields funds were instrumental in clearing the
way for the development of the John A. Burns School of Medicine, Kakaako Waterfront Park,
and the Hawaii Children's Discovery Center in Kakaako. U.S. EPA brownfields grant funds
have been the primary source of funds for the site investigation studies and site remediation
activities underway in conjunction with the Department of Hawaiian Home Lands' (DHHL) East
Kapolei II master-planned community, which when complete will be home to almost 2,000
households of DHHL beneficiaries.
Cleaning up brownfield sites is incredibly beneficial to both local economies and the
environment. Every $1 of federal funds invested in brownfields redevelopment leverages $18 in
total investment, and redeveloping one acre of contaminated land creates an average of 10 jobs.

4. The Honorable Mazie K. Hirono
Page 2
March 21, 2013
Cleanup and redevelopment can increase surrounding property values by as much as 15
percent--and on Oahu, we have seen much higher increases in assessed values as a result of
brownfields redevelopment. Redeveloping a one-acre brownfield site is also estimated to
conserve 4.5 acres of undeveloped green space.
Brownflelds redevelopment can be complicated and expensive; however, that is why
communities need the BUILD Act. The Act would help communities overcome the initial
hurdles to brownfield redevelopment and allow them to create lasting economic engines for
decades to come.
Brownfield redevelopment benefits communities and provides excellent return on
taxpayer investment, which is why I strongly urge you to support the BUILD Act of 2013.
Thank you for your time and consideration.
lyÿ
/
Jesse Sould
c: The Honorable Neil Abercrombie, Governor
Mr. Alex Dodds, Smart Growth America