Center for Creative Land Recycling

CCLR's main goal is to increase the redevelopment of contaminated and blighted properties. When we find promising projects, we want to work with project proponents and the local community to help them overcome obstacles and guide them from initial steps to a completed project, whether the end use is housing, commercial/office space, or open space.

We actively work with state and local leaders in our field to identify groups and projects that have the potential to help local communities, but may lack the resources or capacity to do so on their own. Once we've identified a project, we introduce ourselves and our services, and offer our support in areas where it's most needed. We keep in touch with the projects we support, checking in at regular intervals to monitor whether they've obtained funding, completed assessments, managed cleanup, and more. Generous support from our funders allows us to offer our services at no or very low cost to local governments, non-profits, and affordable housing developers.

Our staff is one of the most experienced groups of people in the United States in brownfield redevelopment. We are familiar with federal and state laws in the locations in which we work, and the dozens of projects we have guided to completion give us an accurate understanding of common pitfalls and the biggest obstacles. We also maintain good relationships with state and federal regulatory agencies, enabling us to put communities in contact with the people who can help them. We are a respected voice in the nations regulatory community, and have the ability to bring diverse groups together around common policy goals.

We have made an appreciable impact in many communities, with civic centers, housing, parks, and businesses coming to low-income and blighted neighborhoods. However, it is still very difficult to redevelop land, and the policy incentives needed to encourage developers to avoid sprawl don't exist. While a national consensus on the need for smart growth and planning is growing, decades of outdated policies often get in the way.