PRESS RELEASE 
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE 
Thursday, October 18, 2007 
Harvesting Brownfields 
Medford Urban Renewal Agency Cleans Up Downtown Medford 
Within the area planned for The Commons of Downtown Medford, 38 
properties have been selected to be part of the Environmental Protection 
Agency (EPA) Brownfields testing program. 
A Brownfield is any property that might be contaminated by the presence 
of a pollutant, in this case, petroleum products. 
Environmental consultants have completed a Phase I Environmental Site 
Assessment (ESA) on each of the 38 properties.  During this assessment, 
historic records for the area were used to determine which properties had 
a history of petroleum use, or are located next to a property with a history 
of petroleum use. 
Of the properties evaluated, 15 were determined to have a record of past 
petroleum businesses, including gasoline stations, vehicle storage, and/or 
automobile repair. 
A Phase II ESA will include a subsurface investigation of soil and water 
conditions to determine the necessary steps required. Of the 15 properties 
determined to have a history of petroleum use, eight will proceed to the 
Phase II ESA level. 
Applications for mitigation (cleanup) grants are also in the process.  These 
are conditional grants, awarded based on the extent of petroleum 
contamination found during the Phase II ESA investigation. 
The environmental assessment firm of Zipper Zeman Associates, Inc. has 
been contracted to perform the Phase I and Phase II ESA investigation. 
A general overview of the Brownfields cleanup project is available at 
www.medfordcommons.com.  Fact sheets are posted under Project 
Progress. 
For more information, Project Contact: 
Medford Urban Renewal Agency 
Jackie L. Rodgers, Executive Director 
45 S. Holly Street 
541-774-2700 
jackie.rodgers@cityofmedford.org