Brownfields are any vacant or underused properties where reuse is complicated by real or perceived environmental contamination. Examples can include a former gas station, an office building with asbestos and lead-paint, a closed steel plant, or a former dry cleaner. Brownfields contribute to health risks, blight, economic decline, and environmental burdens, especially in communities of color.

Using EPA grants, the City supports public and private redevelopment of Brownfields sites with assessment services, and provides loans and subgrants for environmental cleanup.

Environmental Assessment

Assessment can be done for any persons or organizations, public or private, who have access to the property and did not cause the contamination.

The Call For Projects has ended but new projects will be considered on a rolling basis. Please contact the Brownfields Office for more information. 

Approximate timelines for services include:

• Phase I assessment (i.e., records review and a site visit) takes approximately 90-120 days from application to report. 
• Phase II assessment (i.e., soil / groundwater tests, asbestos and lead paint surveys, etc.) takes approximately 120-180 days or longer from application to report, depending on site complexity.
• Phase I and II can be done concurrently to save time.

Brownfields Revolving Loan Fund (RLF)

Cleanups can be funded with loans or subgrants from a Brownfields Revolving Loan Fund (RLF).  The City operates two RLFs: one for sites in Kansas City, Missouri, and a Regional RLF for sites in Jackson County or Kansas City, Missouri, or in Kansas City, Kansas. 

Any persons or organizations, public or private, who have access to the property and are not legally responsible for the contamination may apply for a loan.  Only non-profits and governmental or quasi-governmental entities that own a contaminated site can apply for subgrants.  

Selected pre-applications will be invited to submit full applications. The Brownfields Commission will consider submittals and approve loans and subgrants up to $100,000. Requests for higher amounts go before City Council for approval. Special eligibility rules apply for property owners and sites. Approval of a cleanup loan or subgrant takes about 3-4 months.

For more information, read our Brownfields RLF Fact Sheet.

The Call For Projects has ended, but new projects will be considered on a rolling basis. Please contact the Brownfields Office for more information.

View the 2023 Brownfields Program Summary.

See the latest Brownfield Success Story, the Mattie Rhodes Cultural Arts Center.

The Brownfields Commission is a fifteen-member body created by City ordinance to promote the cleanup and reuse of Brownfield properties.

The Commission reviews projects seeking loans and subgrants from the Kansas City Brownfields Revolving Loan Fund (RLF) program and makes recommendations to the City Council concerning such applications.

The Brownfields Commission generally meets on a quarterly basis or more often as needed.  

More information about the commission and meeting times can be found by visiting the Brownfields Commission page.

The RLF Guidelines document, available here, describes the operating procedures, eligibility requirements and criteria for evaluation of loan and subgrant applications. Drafted in October 2018, this document was not formally adopted by the Brownfields Commission, but has continued to be used on a provisional basis.