Vernon Officials Ready To Move On Daniels Mill Cleanup

VERNON, CT — With now more than $4 million on hand to clean up the Daniels Mill property in the Rockville section of Vernon, bids are scheduled to go out Wednesday to pick a contractor for the work.

That was the word from Vernon Economic Development Coordinator Shaun Gately Tuesday.

On Monday, Vernon U.S. Rep. Joe Courtney said that Vernon has been awarded a $650,000 grant from the federal Environmental Protection Agency to continue cleanup efforts at the Daniels Mill site, one of the mills town officials have targeted for repurposed housing and commercial space.

Monday's Brownfields Cleanup Grant is one of several the town has received to advance the project. Daniels Mill is located at 98 East Main St. The former textile mill has been used over the past few years as a machine shop for the manufacture of fire-resistant paints, pesticides and as office and warehouse space.

The grant application was completed by town staff members with assistance from the University of Connecticut.

"This EPA grant to help cover cleanup costs at Daniels Mill is another key step forward in our effort to restore the gateway to Rockville, develop housing and commercial space and to get the properties back on the tax rolls," Vernon Mayor Daniel Champagne said. "This is a true example of local, state and federal government working together to move Vernon forward. This combined effort is essential to seeing this project through to a successful completion."

Last year, the Connecticut Department of Economic and Community Development awarded the town $2 million for the cleanup of Daniels Mill. The Town is working with Atlanta, GA-based Camden Management to "repurpose" Daniels Mill and the adjacent former Amerbelle and Anocoil mills, into housing and commercial space.

In addition to the $2 million grant from the state, Vernon had also received $300,000 to study strategies for Daniels Mill and $4 million to cleanup Amerbelle.

Gately said Daniels is up first. It's full of what he diplomatically called "old stuff," meaning trash and debris.

Nefeli Bompoti, an assistant professor in the Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering at UConn and program manager for the technical assistance for the Brownfields program, said the funding will act as a catalyst for the revitalization of Daniels Mill.

"At UConn, we are happy to work with communities and support their efforts to transform blighted sites into community assets," Bomptoti said.

Champagne has been consistent is saying the properties are significant enough to save.

"We have been putting the pieces together for what will be a transformational project for downtown Vernon," Mayor Champagne said. "This is a spectacular complex of properties with waterfalls and the Hockanum River flowing through. Every grant we obtain moves us closer to our goal. I am especially grateful to Professor Bompoti and UConn for the critical assistance they provided on this grant application."