New York City Brownfield Incentive Grant (BIG) Program, Pre-Development Design Grant

Pre-Development Design Grants can be used to fund activities undertaken during the early stages of brownfield redevelopment planning. Brownfields are vacant or underutilized sites where redevelopment or reuse may be complicated by environmental contamination. These grants are available to fund the early stages of redevelopment planning that generally precede environmental field investigation and clean up.

To be eligible for Pre-Development Design Grants the property being developed must be located in New York City. Additionally, the Applicant must submit documentation demonstrating that the property is potentially contaminated. Acceptable documentation is outlined in the Additional Notes section below.

Grant Award Amounts: Qualifying Brownfield Property owners or developers are eligible for up to $5,000 in grant funds for Pre-Development Design activities.

Grant award limits increase to $10,000 for projects that specifically address the needs of the surrounding community. These types of projects are called Preferred Community Development Projects. Such projects include: Affordable Housing Developments, Brownfield Opportunity Area (BOA) Compliant Properties and Community Facility Developments.

Eligible Services and Activities: Services and activities that are eligible for reimbursement with Pre-Development Design Grant funds include Title Insurance, Title Search, Market Analysis, Conceptual Plans, Pro-Formas, Zoning Analysis, Community Outreach, Site Survey, and Phase One Environmental Site Assessments.

Note: Pre-Development Design Grants are funded through New York City?s Brownfield Incentive Grant (BIG) Program, which provides flexible grants for a broad range of brownfield activities. The BIG Program aims to spur the cleanup and redevelopment of brownfields throughout New York City.

Reimbursement for eligible services and activities with BIG Program funds is restricted to those services and activities that have been performed by a professional who is registered as a Qualified Vendor with the BIG Program Administrator. Addition of Qualified Vendors to the BIG Program occurs on an on-going basis.

For more information about the BIG Program, including the Pre-Development Design Grant, please contact the Mayor?s Office of Environmental Remediation using the contact information available below.