Funding Sources Summary

The City of Waterloo has worked diligently to leverage outside funding to foster Brownfields and urban core redevelopment initiatives. The city received over $42 million in funding, as described below, within the last decade. Waterloo allocated the money towards helping to revitalize and spur the new economy in Waterloo. The City of Waterloo realizes that its success in redeveloping Brownfields and its pursuit toward a new economy would not be possible without the invaluable support of the grass roots organizations, the public, neighborhood associations, and the organizations listed here.

1. Vision Iowa | www.visioniowa.org

Vision Iowa is a state program that provides financial incentives to communities for the construction of cultural, educational, entertainment, or recreational facilities that enhance the quality of life in Iowa. The City of Waterloo received $8.8 million for their project entitled the “Cedar Valley River Renaissance.” The city allocated $7.3 million for downtown projects including the construction of an inflatable bladder on the Cedar River, an outdoor amphitheatre, a plaza, and a river-walk trail. The Grout Museum received the remaining $1.5 million of the funding to help construct a 30,000 square-foot addition entitled the “Sullivan Brothers Iowa Veterans Museum.”

2. Environmental Protection Agency | www.epa.gov

The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is a federal agency designed to protect the safety and welfare of both humans and the environment. The EPA created the Brownfields Program to give financial assistance to local municipalities for addressing sites with perceived environmental issues. This Program allows stakeholders to work together to prevent, assess, safely cleanup, and sustainably reuse Brownfields. In Waterloo, the EPA’s Assessment Grant is used for community outreach activities and to fund Phase I and Phase II Environmental Site Assessments (ESAs) targeting properties with perceived or actual contamination. The site assessments focus on abandoned or underutilized properties in downtown Waterloo and in the Rath redevelopment area. The EPA Brownfields Cleanup Grant program focuses on cleanup activities at sites contaminated by petroleum and hazardous substances. The City of Waterloo used Cleanup Grant funds at the former Construction Machinery Company property for general site contamination cleanup and to remove underground storage tanks. The city also receives funding from the Brownfields Cleanup Revolving Loans Fund (BCRLF). The EPA grants BCRLF money to the City to loan to qualified borrowers to address contaminant concerns for the purpose of site redevelopment. The City borrowed $350,000 from the BCRLF during the Former Construction Machinery Company property cleanup.

3. ACOE PAS | www.usace.army.mil/cw/cecw-cp/library/pas.pdf

The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers Planning Assistance to States (ACOE PAS) Authority provides technical assistance to states through studies related to planning for water and other associated land resources. In Waterloo, the ACOE helped fund and conduct a $100,000 hydraulics and hydrology study on the Cedar River displaying the economic feasibility of the inflatable bladder project. In addition, the ACOE PAS provided $100,000 in funding for the Rath Neighborhood Land Use Plan to provide a framework for revitalization and redevelopment of the area. The ACOE also allotted $65,000 for a Phase II ESA at the former Construction Machinery Company site.

4. IDED | www.iowalifechanging.com

The Iowa Department of Economic Development has several programs to help spur economic growth and private investment in Iowa cities. The IDED Iowa Brownfield Fund (IBF) provides funding for the acquisition, remediation, and redevelopment of qualified brownfields sites. The City of Waterloo received $325,000 for the demolition of the Former Chamberlain Manufacturing Company and $400,000 for the demolition of the Former Construction Machinery Company facilities. The City used another IBF grant of $691,750 in the Water Street Flats and Rowhouses area for the demolition of existing structures. A second IDED program, the Community Attraction and Tourism (CAT) Grant, is dedicated to providing monetary assistance to community attraction and tourism projects. The City of Waterloo received a $500,000 CAT Grant for the Youth Pavilion addition at the Waterloo Center of Arts. The Riverloop Expo was also awarded $1,000,000 in CAT Grants for the construction of an exposition center downtown that will host a variety of outdoor events. The IDED Grow Iowa Values Fund seeks to help move and grow Iowa’s economy, create jobs, and help generate wealth for Iowans. The City of Waterloo was awarded $3,200,000 towards the Cedar Valley TechWorks Technology Center rehabilitation. The Black’s Building and the Haffa and Fowler Buildings in Waterloo received $40,000 each in IDED funding for their respective renovations.

5. RISE | www.sysplan.dot.state.ia.us/rise.htm

Revitalize Iowa’s Sound Economy (RISE) is a state program through the Iowa Department of Transportation (IDOT). It intends to promote economic development through the construction or improvement of roads and streets. The City of Waterloo used a RISE grant to help fund the construction of a new 18th Street Bridge. The city was also awarded $1.4 million in RISE funds for Cedar Valley TechWorks project.

6. HUD | www.hud.gov

The Federal Housing and Urban Development (HUD) agency seeks to increase homeownership, support community development, and increase access to affordable housing, free from discrimination. To fulfill this goal, HUD created the Community Development Block Grant (CDBG) Program which helps provide decent affordable housing, services to the most vulnerable in our communities, and jobs through the expansion and retention of businesses. The City of Waterloo receives approximately $1.4 million in CBDG funding annually. During the 2007 fiscal year, the City allocated $544,834 to the rehabilitation of homes. Approximately 70 percent of the funds are dedicated to the Rath Brownfields Area in an effort to produce a concentration of improved homes. Another program the City of Waterloo receives HUD funding from is the Economic Development Initiative (EDI). EDI provides grants to local governments to enhance both the security of loans guaranteed through the Section 108 Loan Program and the feasibility of the economic development and revitalization projects they finance. EDI contributed $396,000 towards the rehabilitation of the Cedar Valley TechWorks Technology Center in the former John Deere Westfield site and $500,000 to renovations at Lafayette Park in the Rath Redevelopment area. The City of Waterloo also received $2,095,000 from the HUD Section 108 Loan Guarantee Program for the reconstruction of Sycamore Street. Section 108 Loans provide communities with a source of financing for economic development, housing rehabilitation, public facilities, and large-scale physical development projects.

7. BHCGA | www.bhcga.org

The Black Hawk County Gaming Association (BHCGA) is a corporation that holds and maintains a license to conduct gambling in the Cedar Valley. The association uses proceeds from the Isle of Capri Casino to help fund individual projects designed to enhance the quality of life in the Cedar Valley. BHCGA gave the Grout Museum $1 million towards their 30,000 square-foot addition entitled the “Sullivan Brothers Iowa Veterans Museum.” The Riverloop Expo was awarded $500,000 in BHCGA funds for the construction of an exposition area in downtown Waterloo stretching across two city blocks for a variety of outdoor exposition events.

8. EDA | www.eda.gov

The Economic Development Administration (EDA) is a federal agency with a goal of generating jobs, helping to retain existing jobs, and to stimulate industrial and commercial growth in economically distressed areas of the United States. EDA contributed $1.6 million to the Cedar Valley TechWorks Technology Center rehabilitation in an effort to help create new jobs. The City of Waterloo received $750,000 of EDA funding in the Rath Neighborhood for the acquisition of dilapidated properties.

9. WDC

The Waterloo Development Corporation (WDC) is a group of citizens and businessmen interested in developing and redeveloping properties downtown Waterloo. The WDC gave the Waterloo Center of Arts $1 million towards the Youth Pavilion Expansion and $2.4 million to the City of Waterloo for the Riverloop Expo in downtown. The exposition area will host variety of outdoor events.

10. FHWA | www.fhwa.dot.gov

The Federal Highway Administration (FHWA) is an agency of the United States Department of Transportation (US DOT). The Federal-Aid Highway Program provides federal financial resources and technical assistance to state and local governments for constructing, preserving, and improving the National Highway System. The City of Waterloo received $11.5 million in FHWA funds to create a Highway 63 Corridor Plan to “evaluate future opportunities for improvements in the U.S. 63 Corridor and surrounding neighborhoods.” In addition, a $1 million FHWA Federal Bridge Replacement grant and a $1.7 million FHWA Federal Surface Transportation Program grant were used in the construction of the 18th Street Bridge.