Wisconsin DNR Awards Grant to City to Clean Up Former Scrap Yard

The city of La Crosse, Wis., has received a $250,000 brownfields grant from the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources (DNR) to assist in cleaning up an old scrap yard and steel supply company in the city.

Ed Pryztarski, president of La Crosse’s Redevelopment Authority, says, “We are excited to use these funds to help move the site forward toward cleanup and eventual reuse.”

According to Pryztarski, the work at the former scrap yard is part of a broader effort to clean up and redevelop a 65-acre area near the confluence of three rivers. The cleanup includes a former Exxon-Mobil/Bob Johnson bulk oil terminal.

“By cleaning up the Patros (the former scrap yard) property in an environmentally friendly way, we hope to open up that entire Black River waterfront for public use,” says Pryztarski.

The money is part of the DNR’s “Ready for Reuse” grants, which are federal funds given to communities by the state DNR to clean up contaminated properties. The funds will be used by the city to remove soil at the former salvage yard that are contaminated with PCBs and polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs).

The DNR has additional Ready for Reuse funds available, which can be awarded as either grants or loans. The grant awarded to the city required La Crosse to provide a 22 percent match. Pryztarski notes that the total cleanup costs for the closed scrap yard are estimated at $500,000.