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U.S. EPA Region 9, Arizona Department of Environmental Quality and the Center for Creative Land Recycling Invite You to the Inaugural Arizona Brownfield Conference
Join us for two days of:
- In-depth sessions focused on various aspects of the brownfield reuse process and featuring case studies from local practitioners.
- Mobile tours of cleanup sites, success stories and opportunity areas! Record your adventures in field worksheets and integrate your observations in a guided group discussion!
- A networking social: Connect with speakers, sponsors and other attendees during our social at Culinary Dropout.
- A Remediation & Redevelopment Labs Group Activity! Apply tools and frameworks from the conference sessions to your own site, or a facilitator-provided example. You will leave with tangible next steps or draft materials to advance your brownfield project.
Conference Schedule
Registration, Breakfast & Networking
Principles of Brownfield Reuse Workshop
The Brownfields Foundation Workshop kicks off the two-day conference by establishing a shared baseline of knowledge and language around brownfields redevelopment. It grounds EPA’s definition of brownfields and walks through the core building blocks of successful projects — including liability and due diligence basics, site prioritization, community engagement and visioning, funding pathways, and reuse planning.
Presentations include:
What Is a Brownfield?
Liability, Site Conditions & Due Diligence Basics
Site Prioritization
Community Engagement & Visioning
Funding Pathways
Redevelopment & Reuse Pathways: From Assessment to Reuse/Clean Up Planning
Lunch & Networking
Mobile Tour: Cleanup Sites, Success Stories & Opportunity Areas
The mobile tour offers participants a practical look at a selection of sites representing different points along the redevelopment continuum. Stops may include properties in early planning stages, sites moving through assessment or redevelopment, and completed projects now in reuse. Discussion will focus on how communities navigate changing conditions, priorities, and constraints over time, and how planning, funding, regulatory coordination, and community considerations influence decisions at each stage.
Networking Social
Join us at Culinary Dropout for an opportunity to engage with speakers, sponsors and conference attendees.
Registration, Breakfast & Networking
Session 1 - Redevelopment & Reuse Pathways: From Assessment to Cleanup
This session explores how brownfield sites move from assessment through cleanup and toward reuse. Participants will learn about key decision points, common redevelopment pathways, and how EPA and state resources support project advancement.
Session 2 - Funding & Resource Layering
This session provides a clear framework for understanding how multiple funding and financing sources work together over the life of a brownfield project. Participants will learn how brownfield-specific funding, traditional redevelopment financing, and private investment can be stacked and sequenced to support different stages of redevelopment. Using a simplified capital matrix, the session prepares participants to think strategically about aligning resources with project needs and sets the stage for hands-on application in the afternoon lab.
Session 3 - Remediation & Redevelopment through ADEQ & EPA Resources
An exploration of Arizona’s approach to brownfields remediation and redevelopment, focusing on state programs, policies, and coordination opportunities through ADEQ. The session highlights how state resources complement EPA funding, where ADEQ fits into the redevelopment process, and how early engagement with the state can help communities advance site cleanup and reuse.
Session 4 - Community Engagement & Outreach
Effective brownfield redevelopment depends on meaningful, well-timed community involvement. This session explores practical approaches for engaging residents, stakeholders, and local partners throughout the redevelopment process. Speakers will discuss strategies for building trust, incorporating community priorities into decision-making, and maintaining engagement as projects evolve. Examples will highlight how thoughtful outreach supports equitable reuse outcomes, strengthens project support, and helps communities navigate change while advancing redevelopment goals.
Lunch & Networking
Remediation & Redevelopment Labs Group Activity Round 1
Day 2 features interactive, facilitator-led labs that build on workshop and session presentations through hands-on project work. In each lab, participants apply tools and frameworks to their own site or a facilitator-provided example and leave with tangible next steps or draft materials to advance their brownfields project.
PLEASE NOTE: Participants will select two labs when registering. Labs are subject to change.
Lab Options
Site Prioritization & Criteria: Using your site or a facilitator-provided example, apply a prioritization framework and leave with a ranked list based on readiness, risk, and community goals.
Funding & Resource Layering: Working from your project or a sample scenario, develop a step-by-step funding sequence that layers Federal, State, and private resources.
Community Outreach & Engagement: Apply hands-on engagement tools to your community or a provided case and walk away with a draft outreach providing you with your tool to move forward for equitable reuse.
Remediation & Redevelopment through ADEQ & EPA Resources: Working from your project or a sample scenario, develop a plan on how to engage with ADEQ and EPA and identify complimentary regulatory, technical, and funding resources
Remediation & Redevelopment Labs Group Activity Round 2
Closing Discussion / Q&A
Speakers
Senior Brownfield Consultant
Center for Creative Land Recycling
Brownfields Coordinator
Arizona Department of Environmental Quality
Life Scientist, Brownfields Division
EPA Region 9
Manager – Brownfields & Voluntary Remediation Program Unit
Arizona Department of Environmental Quality
Permit and Regulatory Compliance Officer
Pima County
Senior Planner
City of Bisbee
Principal, Environmental Services
Stantec
Environmental Project Coordinator,
City of Tucson
Project Director,
SCS Engineers
Environmental Scientist,
City of Tucson
Sponsor this Event
Event sponsors receive opportunities to meet and engage with land recycling professionals and share expertise as speakers. Click the link to learn more about regional conference sponsorship opportunities.
Catalyst Sponsors
Friend Sponsors
Additional Sponsors
Thank you to Atlas for supporting our Networking Event at Culinary Dropout
Thank you to SCS Engineers for supporting our mobile tour
Tucson Association of Realtors
Thank you to the Tucson Association of Realtors for making their facilities available to us for this event.
Hotel Considerations
While we are not endorsing specific properties, we researched several nearby hotels for convenience and affordability. These options are less than 15 minutes from the venue and are currently showing competitive rates aligned with GSA pricing (note: rates are subject to change):
