The Town of Front Royal and Warren County recently approved a conceptual reuse plan for the Site. According to the conceptual reuse plan, the area east of the railroad tracks would be redeveloped for commercial or light industrial use, and the area west of the railroad tracks would be redeveloped for passive recreational use.

     Traditionally, redevelopment at inactive industrial sites, such as Brownfields and Superfund sites, has waited until after the clean-up process is complete. (Brownfields sites are old industrial or commercial properties that have not been placed on the NPL and may be suitable for redevelopment.) Unfortunately, this process has meant that work at these sites is sometimes duplicated and that valuable time is lost before the community can benefit from the reuse of these properties. EPA, DEQ, and FMC recognize that understanding the community’s planned future use for a property is important in determining the most appropriate clean-up plan for a site. If the future use is known, then the risk assessment process and evaluation of clean-up options can be targeted, simplified, and shortened. In addition, the remedial design can include components to facilitate and accelerate redevelopment of the property. Conversely, redevelopment can be affected by environmental issues, financing questions, and community concerns.

     Obtaining input from all interested parties throughout the clean-up and redevelopment processes is the best way to ensure that the final clean-up remedy protects human health and the environment and that the redevelopment meets the future needs of the community. To assist the community with coordinating its redevelopment efforts while clean-up activities continue, EPA, DEQ, and FMC decided to implement a multi- stakeholder involvement process for the Site. The EDA, as the Town and County’s main economic development entity, also has joined this process, as it will play a critical role in the redevelopment of the Site. The model selected for the multi-stakeholder involvement process is ASTM Standard E-50.03, “Standard Guide to the Process of Sustainable Brownfields Redevelopment.”

     Although the standard was written with brownfields sites in mind, EPA, DEQ, the EDA, and FMC have agreed that its model of a multi-stakeholder involvement process is appropriate to use at the Site. EPA, DEQ, the EDA, and FMC’s goal is to bring together into one group all parties who have an interest in the Site so that ideas can be shared, concerns can be addressed, and clean-up and redevelopment efforts can be streamlined. The group will advise EPA and DEQ throughout the clean-up process and the redevelopment entities throughout the reuse planning process.

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