From Poor Reputation to

Model Mixed-Use

Emeryville, California

Victim to the typical abandonment of numerous industrial 

sectors in the mid-1900s, Emeryville, CA was left with an unappealing 

burden of dilapidation, poverty, and unemployment. The city was 

plagued by brownfields, with at least sixty percent of its non-residential 

property lying vacant or underutilized, and a loss of 450 jobs and 

$13.3 million in tax revenues. In addition to this uninviting spectacle, 

considerable soil and ground water contamination was left behind, 

contributing to the proverbial dark cloud hanging over the small city. 

Nevertheless, with the help of a few key players, including EPA, 

the City of Emeryville has changed its poor reputation by turning 

brownfields into model mixed-use developments. 

One particular brownfield in Emeryville, Heritage Square, was home 

to two structures: a transformer manufacturing facility owned by 

Westinghouse Corporation, and an oil-processing tank farm owned 

by Chevron. In 1993, the City of Emeryville, with the help of 

EmeryStation, LLC/ Wareham Development, constructed an Amtrak 

station at the property hoping to attract development to the area. 

However, high amounts of polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs) existed 

in the soils around Heritage Square, and the Westinghouse facility 

was monitored by EPA as a federal Toxic Substances Control Act 

(TSCA) site. These factors contributed to anxiety and hesitation from 

prospective developers. 

EPA awarded the City of Emeryville a $200,000 Brownfields 

Assessment Demonstration Pilot grant in 1996. As part of a citywide 

program, the city used the funds to determine that PCB contamination 

in the soil surrounding Heritage Square, which was assumed to be 

widespread, was not a major concern for the redevelopment of the 

property. In addition, Ignacio Dayrit, Emeryville Pilot Coordinator, 

explains that “with EPA’s help, we [the city] were able to limit the 

extent of the [TSCA] agreement to develop on certain parcels and 

showed there were low third-party risks on the site.” These factors 

helped to eliminate the negative stigma of the property, alleviating 

developers’ fears. 

The Green City Lofts in Emeryville, California. 

JUST THE FACTS:

• A large, former industrial site in 

Emeryville, CA held contamination 

uncertainties that discouraged 

developers. 

• Assessments funded through EPA 

Brownfields grants revealed that the 

nature of PCB contamination on the 

property was not as severe 

as suspected. 

• An EPA Brownfi elds Cleanup 

Revolving Loan Fund was used to 

create a final, capping solution to 

remaining contaminants. This removed 

the final barrier to redevelopment. 

• This once-stigmatized property is now 

home to hundreds of thousands of 

square feet of office space and 100 

condominium units. 

“EPA has certainly been 

involved with [the city of Emeryville] for 

some time... both have been proactive in 

thinking outside the box in terms of how 

to deal with brownfields issues, which are 

many in Emeryville.”

—A private developer in 

Emeryville, CA 

continued • 
Despite the PCB contamination, EmeryStation, LLC bought the brownfield 

and arranged for its cleanup. Westinghouse agreed to dig up most of the 

contamination, but some remained. In 1997, EmeryStation I, a 250,000 

square-foot office building, was constructed on the Heritage Square CONTACTS:

property. EmeryStation II, a parking structure with more than 800 For more information contact 

spaces, was also built, with plans to build the Terraces at EmeryStation, U.S. EPA REGION 9 

100 condominium units above the structure. An additional 170,000 (415) 947-8000 

Visit the EPA Brownfields Web site at: square-foot office building, EmeryStation North, was also planned for http://www.epa.gov/brownfi elds/


the property. However, both the Terraces and EmeryStation North could 

not obtain final occupancy approval until the lack of adequate vehicular 

access to the structures was addressed.

An EPA $500,000 Brownfields Cleanup Revolving Loan Fund (BCRLF) 

awarded to the city in 1999 was used to construct an access road that served 

as a cap to remaining PCB contamination, allowing for final occupancy approval 

for EmeryStation North and the Terraces. Geoff Sears, a representative of Wareham Development, 

expressed that “EPA has certainly been involved with Emeryville for some time,” and that “both have 

been proactive in thinking outside the box in terms of how to deal with brownfields issues, which are 

many in Emeryville.”

Since the construction of the access road, EmeryStation North and the Terraces at EmeryStation have 

been completed. In 2003, Emeryville received a $350,000 EPA assessment grant to assess the last, 

and most contaminated portion of the property, called the “mound,” which will become a mixed-use 

Transit Hub directly adjacent to the Emeryville Amtrak station. The station serves not only Amtrak 

trains, but also inter-city trains, AC transit bus service, and a free shuttle. The entire redevelopment 

area encompasses approximately 10 acres and is adjacent to significant commercial development. With 

affordable housing, office, and retail space, this transit-oriented development is truly a model example 

of mixed-use redevelopment. 

Brownfields Success Story Solid Waste EPA-560-F-08-301 

From Poor Reputation to Model Mixed-Use and Emergency September 2008 

Emeryville, California Response (5105T) www.epa.gov/brownfields/