October 2023

LOUISIANA MUNICIPAL ADVISORY AND TECHNICAL SERVICES
A Tallulah Renewal: City Receives Substantial
Funds for Brownfield Remediation
Like many communities of the
Mississippi Delta, Tallulah’s
thriving agricultural economy
struggled in the years following
the second World War.
Changes to farming practices
increased efficiency and productivity
but left many traditional
workers behind. Longtime
residents began to seek
their fortunes in larger cities,
leaving scattered commercial
and residential buildings quietly
fading from disuse.
On the corner of Mulberry
and East Green Streets stands a two-story edifice once home
to H&H Repair Service, Inc. Now closed and boarded, sadly
attended by debris and broken glass, this former auto body
shop earned a Five-star Yelp review just three years ago.
“Had a blowout on the highway in Louisiana,” wrote a stranded
motorist on her way home to Dallas. “This shop was closed at
the time, [but] helped me anyway. I appreciate the hospitality.”
Now, thanks to half a million dollars in new grant funding from
the EPA, Tallulah’s spirit of hospitality—along with numerous
local landmarks—stands to shine again in the heart of Madison
Parish.
“Brownfields” include
a wide assortment of
blighted or abandoned
properties that may
have been contaminated
by industrial or
agricultural pollutants. Remediation is typically difficult and
costly, and disputes over ownership and responsibility can
hamper efforts to return these properties to productive use.
“It’s not just about pollution but also the perception of pollution,”
notes Brownfields expert and LaMATS remediation program
consultant, Dr. John Sutherlin of The CAID Group. While
one property may look worse than it is, another might confirm
our worst suspicions. “After air, soil, water, and building sampling,”
he said, “we find it needs remediation.”
That’s why Sutherlin and LaMATS, on invitation from Tallulah
City Hall, began a preliminary assessment of local sites two
years ago in anticipation of this summer’s successful request
for brownfield remediation funding. Tallulah’s recent EPA
award will support the series of detailed searches and sampling
work the community will need just to learn what it’s
dealing with.
Brownfield funding, which is available to local governments
through a robust grant process overseen by the Environmental
Protection Agency and the Louisiana Department of Environmental
Quality, can cover both the detailed assessment
phase and later efforts at site remediation. LaMATS service,
guided by Dr. Sutherlin, provides local governments cost-free
initial property assessments and consulting help as communities
undertake the grant application process.
“We work particularly with communities that don’t have the capacity
to submit an application on their own,” explained Sutherlin.
“Our role is to facilitate that process; get the money they need
to put those [certified brownfield] properties back into use.”
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LMR | OCTOBER 2023