The former Construction Machinery Company site is associated with manufacturing uses dating back to circa 1900. The 11.11-acre parcel once contained twenty buildings, including a foundry. Many of the operations used hazardous materials such as metal coatings and paint-related solvents. After the company went out of business in the late 1990s, the buildings became neglected and were targets of arson and vandalism. The City of Waterloo later acquired a major portion of the site with assistance from the U.S. EPA, U.S. Army Corps of Engineers and the State of Iowa. Subsequently the site has been the subject of demolition, the removal of structures, environmental site assessments, and remediation efforts. Cleanup involved the removal of former underground tanks, contaminants in the soil, and debris from burned buildings.
Project Funding Sources
$200,000
Environmental Protection Agency (EPA)
Hazardous Substances Cleanup Grant
$65,000
Army Corps of Engineers (ACOE)
Planning Assistance to States
$400,000
Iowa Department of Economic Development (IDED)
Iowa Brownfields Fund
$350,000
Environmental Protection Agency (EPA)
Brownfield Cleanup Revolving Loan Fund (BCRLF)
Project Timeline
01.2002
Project received a $400,000 Iowa Brownfields Fund grant from the Iowa Department of Economic Development.
05.2004
Vacant buildings demolished with debris and asbestos-laden materials removed from the site.
05.2005 | ARTICLE
Project received a $200,000 EPA Brownfields Cleanup grant.
09.2007 | ARTICLE
Contaminated soils and buried tank cars removed from site using an EPA Cleanup Grant and BCRLF funds.
01.2011 | ARTICLE
Design of new Public Works facility unveiled to the public.
11.2011 | ARTICLE
Waterloo City Council re-bids new Public Works facility.
08.2013 | ARTICLE
New Public Works facility nearing completion.
06.2014 | ARTICLE
Ribbon-cutting ceremony scheduled for June 20, 2014.
Project Success Story
The City’s proactive cleanup of the former Construction Machinery Company site removed a significant health and safety concern for area residents and cleared the way for reinvestment. The City began constructing a new $7.4 million Public Works Building on the vacant manufacturing operation in 2012. The 130,000 square-foot structure opened in the spring of 2014 and features storage room for 150 vehicles, including motor pool cars, garbage and dump trucks, and motor graders, and will house the street department and central garage operations. Future plans include consolidating traffic operations and building maintenance into the facility. IDNR issued a No Further Action (NFA) certificate for the property on October 8, 2019. The document is available for download on the City’s Interactive Brownfields Map.