The NYC Brownfield Incentive Grant (BIG) Program funds a range of eligible services and activities through all phases of a brownfield project. Information is provided below on grant types, grant award limits, specific grants and bonuses, links to download applications, and additional NYC BIG Program technical documentation.

• Grant Types: Learn more about the four main grant types and each of the ten specific grants and bonuses. View details on each grant and bonus, grant award limits for each grant, and links to download applications and related documents.
• Grant Award Limits: See a summary table of grant award limits by property type.
• Technical Specifications: Read about eligible services and what documentation must accompany invoices for reimbursement (minimum performance standards).

Grant Types

• Pre-Enrollment Grants
  • Pre-Development Design Grant
  • Environmental Investigation Grant
  • Technical Assistance Grant
  
  
• Enrollment Grants
  • Cleanup Grant
  • Environmental Insurance Grant
  • Technical Assistance Grant
  • Track-1 Bonus Cleanup Grant
  • BOA Strategic Property Bonus Cleanup Grant
  
  
• Brownfield Opportunity Area (BOA) Grants
  • BOA Local Match Grant
  • BOA Application Technical Assistance Grant
  
  
• Hazardous Materials E-Designation and Restrictive Declaration Remediation Grant
  
  
  
  
  
  

Pre-Enrollment Grants

Pre-Enrollment grants may be used to pay for pre-development design, environmental investigation, and technical assistance for not-for-profit developers. These services and activities may be performed at Qualifying Brownfield Properties or Preferred Community Development Project sites that are not yet enrolled in the New York City Brownfield Cleanup Program (NYC BCP).

Pre-Development Design Grants

Pre-Development Design Grants can be used to pay for services that advance brownfield projects at an early stage by funding eligible tasks that generally precede environmental field investigation and enrollment in the NYC BCP. See a list of services that may be funded by this grant.

Environmental Investigation Grants

Environmental Investigation Grants can be used to pay for environmental investigation tasks that characterize a property's subsurface contamination prior to enrollment in the NYC BCP. See a list of services that may be funded by this grant.

*Cap includes any Pre-Development Design Grants previously awarded on a specific project

Technical Assistance Grants

Technical Assistance Grants can be awarded in addition to the other Pre-Enrollment Grants and Enrollment Grants. This grant is available to not-for-profit developers of Preferred Community Development Projects and can be used for eligible services associated with the planning and execution of a brownfield project; professional advice on the selection of qualified vendors; and the preparation of a budget, the development and review of investigation and cleanup schedules, statements of work, and draft work plans. See a list of services that may be funded by this grant.

*Cap is in addition to any Pre-Enrollment Grants previously awarded on a specific project

Enrollment Grants

Once enrolled in the NYC Brownfield Cleanup Program, projects are eligible for several types of Enrollment Grants and Bonus Grants. Enrollment Grants may be used to pay for eligible cleanup services and environmental insurance. Eligible projects may also obtain a Bonus Grant which is not counted towards the grant award limits.

Cleanup Grants

Cleanup Grants can be used towards eligible services and activities conducted during a properties’ remediation under the NYC BCP or towards the development of a Remedial Action Work Plan. See a list of services that may be funded by this grant.

*Cap includes any Pre-Enrollment Grants as well as any Environmental Insurance Grant previously awarded on a specific project

Environmental Insurance Grants

Environmental Insurance Grants can be used towards the purchase of pollution liability insurance or cleanup cost cap insurance.

*Cap includes any Pre-Enrollment Grants as well as any Cleanup Grant previously awarded on a specific project

Technical Assistance Grants

Technical Assistance Grants can be awarded in addition to the other Pre-Enrollment Grants and Enrollment Grants. This grant is available to not-for-profit developers of Preferred Community Development Projects and can be used for eligible services associated with the planning and execution of a brownfield project; professional advice on the selection of qualified vendors; and the preparation of a budget, the development and review of investigation and cleanup schedules, statements of work, and draft work plans.

*Cap is in addition to any Pre-Enrollment or Enrollment Grants previously awarded on a specific project, but includes any Pre-Enrollment Technical Assistant Grants previously awarded on that project.

Track-1 Bonus Cleanup Grants

Track-1 Bonus Cleanup Grants can be awarded in addition to Cleanup and Environmental Insurance Grant awards and are available for sites with remedies that achieve permanent cleanups. A site must be cleaned up while enrolled in the NYC BCP to be eligible.

*Cap is in addition to any Pre-Enrollment Grants as well as any Cleanup Grant or Environmental Insurance Grant previously awarded on a specific project

BOA Strategic Property Bonus Cleanup Grants

BOA Strategic Property Bonus Cleanup Grants are awarded in addition to Cleanup and Environmental Insurance Grant awards and are available for sites designated by a Brownfield Opportunity Area (BOA) as a strategic brownfield site. A site must be cleaned up while enrolled in the NYC BCP to be eligible.

*Cap is in addition to any Pre-Enrollment Grants as well as any Cleanup Grant or Environmental Insurance Grant previously awarded on a specific project

Brownfield Opportunity Area (BOA) Grants

The BIG Program offers grants intended to further the goals of the NYS Department of State (DOS) Brownfield Opportunity Area (BOA) Grant program. These grants may be used by existing BOA groups for the BOA 10% local match or by Community Based Organizations (CBOs) interested in applying for a NYS DOS BOA Grant. Applicants for these grants will use an application for the specific BOA grant they are applying for.

BOA Local Match Grants

BOA Local Match Grants are available to NYS BOA grantees to use towards meeting the local match requirement of the NYS Department of State (DOS) BOA Grant program. This grant is intended to alleviate some of the financial strain that BOA grantees experience in meeting the 10% match required by the BOA program.

*The local match grant award limit reimburses 10% or $25,000, whichever is lower, of the total BOA grant amount awarded to the CBO by the NYS DOS.

BOA Application Technical Assistance Grants

BOA Application Technical Assistance Grants are designed to encourage the creation of new BOAs throughout NYC. This grant is available to Community Based Organizations (CBOs) interested in applying for a NYS Department of State (DOS) BOA Grant. Funds from this grant can be used towards eligible services that are needed for the development of a NYS DOS BOA Application.

Hazardous Materials E-Designation or Restrictive Declaration Remediation Grants

Hazardous Materials E-Designation and Restrictive Declaration Remediation Grants are available to owners or developers of E-Designation and Restrictive Declaration Hazardous Materials sites that are cleaned up. These sites must have a Remedial Action Plan approved by OER, or for older projects, by the NYC Department of Environmental Protection (DEP). These sites must also have received a Notice of Satisfaction (NOS) from OER indicating that all environmental requirements related to the hazardous material condition have been addressed.

Grant Award Limits

Each BIG Program grant has a maximum reimbursable amount, or grant award limit, for eligible services that BIG Program funds can be used for (see Technical Specifications). Grant Award Limits are dependent on both the applicant and the type of project that is being pursued by the applicant. Grant-specific eligibility is described in the grant applications (see also the NYC BIG Eligibility Requirements in the BIG Program Rule for more detail). Additionally, the total project grant award limit is cumulative and includes most but not all grants. The following table shows the NYC BIG Program Grant Award Limits organized by grant type and by the type of project.

¹ Pre-Enrollment Grants include Pre-Development Design, Environmental Investigation, and Technical Assistance Grants.
² Enrollment Grants include Cleanup, Environmental Insurance, and Technical Assistance Grants, as well as Track 1 Cleanup Bonus and BOA Strategic Property Bonus Cleanup Grants.
³ BOA Grants include BOA Application Technical Assistance and BOA Local Match Grants.
⁴ Award Limit includes all funds received as Pre-Development Design Grant reimbursement.
⁵ Award Limit includes all funds received as Pre-Development Design Grant, Environmental Investigation Grant and Environmental Insurance Grant reimbursement.
⁶ Award Limit includes all funds received as Pre-Development Design Grant, Environmental Investigation Grant and Cleanup Grant reimbursement.
⁷ The Grant Award Limit for Technical Assistance Grants (TA) for Not-for-Profit Developers of Preferred Community Development Projects is $5,000 and includes both the Pre-Enrollment and Enrollment TA Disbursement.
⁸ This grant is only applicable to projects on properties with an NYC Hazardous Materials E-Designation or Restrictive Declaration. These grants cannot be combined with Pre-Enrollment or Enrollment Grants.

Example of Cumulative Grant Award Limits

Grantees should note that funds spent on Pre-Development and/or Environmental Investigation services will be subtracted from subsequent grant award amounts on a specific project. For example, if a Preferred Community Development Project spends $10,000 on Pre-Development services, the same project would be limited to apply for $15,000 in Environmental Investigation Grant funds (i.e. the $25,000 Environmental Investigation Grant maximum for a Preferred Community Development Project minus $10,000 maximum reimbursed for Pre-Development Design services).

Subsequently, any previously awarded Pre-Enrollment Grant amounts count towards the grant award limit for Cleanup Grants and Environmental Insurance Grants for the same project. For example, if a Preferred Community Development Project spent $25,000 on Pre-Enrollment Grants, that same project would have up to $75,000 to dedicate to a Cleanup Grant and/or an Environmental Insurance Grant (i.e. the $100,000 Cleanup and Environmental Insurance maximum for a Preferred Community Development Project minus $10,000 spent on Pre-Development services minus $15,000 spent on Environmental Investigation services).

For questions on grant award amounts please contact us by calling the BIG call-back service at 212-380-1562 or e-mailing grants@nycbig.info.

Technical Specifications

Grant awards may only be used for pre-determined BIG Program Eligible Services and Activities. A complete list of eligible services and activities and reimbursable allowances for each is available in the following Technical Specifications document. Each grant application also contains services that are eligible for funding under that grant type. Generally, reimbursable amounts for eligible services are greater for Preferred Community Development Projects than for Qualifying Brownfield Property projects (see Grant Award Limits).

In addition, certain documentation must accompany invoices submitted with applications for reimbursement. This information is referred to as Performance Standards Documentation and is also in the following document.

• NYC BIG Program Technical Specifications.

It should be noted that the BIG Program does not assume that the reimbursable allowance will necessarily cover the full cost per service or total cost of services charged by the Qualified Vendor conducting the work. It is the Grantee's responsibility to pay the difference between the cost of a service or activity funded by the grant and the amount charged by the Qualified Vendor.