Hailed as a Brownfields Success Story by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), the complex cleanup of the once-contaminated former Fonda manufacturing facility site has unlocked five and a half acres of high-value development opportunity for the City of St. Albans. Since the City’s 2007 purchase of the site, VHB has been integrally involved in its remediation and redevelopment—a top City priority.
VHB’s site assessment revealed contaminants in the site’s three buildings and its 2.5-acre concrete slab, soil, and groundwater. VHB prepared Corrective Action Plans (CAPs) for the site and oversaw their implementation, closely coordinating with multiple regulatory stakeholders to achieve compliance. The Vermont Department of Environmental Conservation touted VHB’s Lot 1 CAP as a “template” for future brownfield projects.
Redevelopment of the transformed site will help the City meet critical economic development and housing needs. A 10,000-square-foot rail dispatch center with 62 employees opened in 2023. Ground has broken for a 33-unit affordable senior housing project and the City is seeking a developer to build 87 units of workforce housing. VHB is also providing design, remediation, and construction oversight services for the rehabilitation of a rail corridor into a public road for the Fonda redevelopment site and a bike path.
