6.4 Brownfield Rails-to-Trails Drives Economic Development in Gainesville, GA: Planning Bites

In 2008, the City of Gainesville acquired a Georgia Recreational Trails Grant from GA DRN, and subsequently purchased a former rail line from CSX Transportation (CSXT) in conjunction with CSXT’s rails-to-trails program. The former rail line was subsequently enrolled in the Georgia EPD’s brownfields program and identified impacts were remediated as necessary. This former rail corridor was then developed as part of a 14-mile walking trail and park system. This brownfields/rails-to-trails project was the catalyst to over $300 million of private/non-City government investments in the area. This success to the community has encouraged the City of Gainesville to purchase an additional connecting former CSXT rail line which is also enrolling in the brownfields program. How a community can leverage an EPA brownfield grant to align brownfield site reuse with local economic, infrastructure, social, and environmental conditions. When it comes to brownfield redevelopment projects and their funding, timing is critical and projects need to be logically sequenced to maximize benefit and momentum. Small wins early on can be unduly valuable in building stakeholder support, demonstrating organizational capacity, and leading to bigger wins. With every community having its own unique revitalization goals, successful brownfield redevelopment comes in many forms. To successfully move a brownfield site toward reuse, you must introduce your project and vision to potential partners early on in the process and take into the account a myriad of factors that affect reuse.