Only a few years ago, the City of Gardena, California, in Los

Angeles County, had a bleak economic outlook. The aerospace boom

that had once brought jobs and manufacturing to the area was over, and

nearly three-quarters of the city’s residents were impoverished. Filled

with vacant, idle properties that contributed nothing to the community,

Gardena needed a way to create new development opportunities and

improve its overall prospects. By cleaning up contaminated property and

bringing new, mixed use development and private investment to the area,

the city stimulated its stagnant economy, leveraged new jobs, and turned

a $3.1 million debt into a $3 million reserve.

The City of Gardena first became aware of EPA’s Brownfields Program

in 1999, and recognized the opportunity to transform its idle properties.

Despite a substantial budget deficit, the city council made the difficult

decision to spend $10,000 to conduct a detailed inventory of the city’s

brownfields. The resulting study, which identified 47 properties with

varied levels of redevelopment potential, was then used to apply for an

EPA Brownfields Assessment grant.

EPA’s $200,000 Assessment grant enabled Gardena to perform

environmental assessments on selected brownfields, and remove the

contamination uncertainties that had long stood in the way of their reuse.

The city sought input from local business associations and Gardena’s

Economic Development Committee as to which properties should first be

addressed by the EPA grant, based on criteria such as redevelopment

potential and greatest community benefit. Those properties included a

former airstrip more recently used for open-air swap meets, former gas

and auto service stations, a long-dormant strip mall, and a dry-cleaning

facility destroyed by fire.

The city’s brownfields assessments drew immediate attention from

private developers. “[The EPA grant] is a tool to show the business

community that the city... will help where we can help,” explained Mitch

Lansdell, Gardena’s City Manager. Economic Development Director

Yvonne Mallory further elaborated, “The city brought attention to several

sites and helped spur development... no one paid attention until we got

the Brownfields site money.”

And the results have been dramatic. Already, $2 million in cleanup

funding have been leveraged to remove contaminants from the former

airstrip property and from a brownfield once used as a refinery.

Gardena’s once-idle brownfields are now home to a Walgreens, a SavOn Drugs, and a new shopping center—representing just a portion of the

city’s redevelopment successes.

JUST THE FACTS:

• A $200,000 EPA grant enabled

Gardena to perform environmental

assessments on selected brownfields,

and remove the contamination

uncertainties preventing their reuse.

• Brownfields targeted for restoration

included a former airstrip more recently

used for open-air swap meets, former

gas and auto service stations, a longdormant strip mall, and a dry-cleaning

facility destroyed by fire.

• Following assessments, Gardena

acquired the former airstrip/swap meet

area as the site of a new, state-of-theart, public transportation facility.

• Development of this new facility is

being funded by $25 million from the

Federal Transit Administration, and $4

million in state transportation funds.

Gardena, California

continued 

In Gardena, Good Things are Growing

on Cleaned-Up Soil

An aerial view of the former Discount Priceland

site in Gardena, California.

The results of brownfields

assessments conducted by the

city drew immediate attention from

developers. “The city brought attention

to several sites and helped spur

development... no one paid

attention until we got the

Brownfields site money.”

 —Yvonne Mallory

City of Gardena Economic

Development Director
Demolition in progress

on the former Discount Priceland site.

On the former airstrip/swap meet facility, for example, EPA grant-funded assessments led to Gardena’s

acquisition of the property as home for a new, state-of-the-art, public transportation facility. The Federal

Transit Administration contributed $25 million for this project, with an additional $4 million provided by

state transportation funds. Scheduled for completion in Spring 2007, the new transportation

center will leverage 75 jobs when operational. In addition, the facility will use the latest

“green” development practices to minimize the property’s ecological footprint and

reduce any potentially negative environmental impacts.

Another of Gardena’s brownfields, once the location of an aviation

component manufacturing facility, is being cleaned up as part of an

agreement between its former owner and the city. A new supermarket has

already been built on a portion of the property, and once cleanup is

complete, a 55-unit residential complex is planned. “Some sites sit there for

years, because people think it will take a lot to clean up,” explained the EPA

Project Officer. “Once developers see the costs, lots of times it’s lower than

the ballpark estimate. Then they don’t have to take a big risk.”

From the beginning, Gardena emphasized community involvement and input

as part of brownfields restoration. The city held community information

meetings to present the initial brownfields assessment results. Gardena also

formed a “Brownfields Community Relations Committee” comprised of local

business owners, community representatives, and municipal staff, to keep everyone

informed of brownfields project decisions and status. In addition, the city published a

brownfields newsletter, established a toll-free number for brownfields project information (available in

both English and Spanish), and set up an environmental education display at Gardena’s public library. The

result has been a continual exchange of information among brownfields

project managers, city officials, local businesses, and potential

developers—ensuring that community, economic, and

environmental interests are recognized as Gardena’s

brownfields are being transformed.

Only a few years after the city decided to spend $10,000

to inventory its brownfields, Gardena’s outlook has been

transformed like so many of its once-dormant properties.

Already, the city’s $3.1 million debt has been replaced by a

$3 million reserve. Gardena’s progress with its initial,

$200,000 grant led to subsequent EPA grants of $150,000 and

$400,000, all for continued brownfields assessments.

The city plans to add to its successes the restoration of a

contaminated property that had been dormant for 15 years. This

5.6-acre property, at the prime location of Artesia and Normandy Avenues, is currently undergoing a

cleanup funded by the property’s former owners. The city expects that eventually, the property will

become one of the busiest retail areas in the city and lead to the restoration of the entire surrounding

area. “The Brownfields Program has been one of the most monumental programs available to our city,”

explained Yvonne Mallory. “Developers are now coming and seeing what they can bring to Gardena. We

never had that before.”

In April 2006, Gardena was chosen as one of 10 cities to receive EPA’s prestigious Environmental

Achievement Award.

CONTACTS:

For more information contact

U.S. EPA REGION 9

(415) 972-3092

Visit the EPA Brownfields Web site at:

http://www.epa.gov/brownfields/

Brownfields Success Story Solid Waste EPA-560-F-06-240

Gardena, California and Emergency August 2006

Response (5105T) www.epa.gov/brownfields/