RE: [CPEO-BIF] The value of the annual National Brownfields Confe rence

["Ilan, Lee" <lilan@cityhall.nyc.gov>]

 I always find great value in the annual conference.   
The conference allows us to evaluate our efforts and think a little more
creatively about our work - not always possible with the usual deadlines and
day-to-day tasks.  Exposure to new ideas and practices, meeting peers in
other localities, and a greater understanding of how our city's brownfield
situation is and isn't like others have proved beneficial in advancing our
efforts in New York.   A less-than annual conference would miss out on the
opportunity to learn about early stages of innovation, discuss timely issues
such as AAI, and be up to date on new Federal initiatives.  Further, I echo
Ev's sentiment that the event is an excellent training ground for people new
to the brownfields field.

By the way, is everyone with these opinions remembering to submit them to
the official EPA conference feedback site?  I'm not sure EPA is reading the
CPEO list.  
To make sure EPA sees your comments, be sure they've gone to
Brownfields_Conference_Feedback@epa.gov
Look forward to seeing many of you in Denver!
--Lee

Ms. Lee Ilan
Senior Environmental Planner 
New York City Office of Environmental Coordination
100 Gold Street, 2nd Floor 
New York, NY 10038 
Tel. 212-788-2929 
Fax 212-788-2941 
lilan@cityhall.nyc.gov
URL: www.nyc.gov/oec


-----Original Message-----
From: brownfields-bounces@list.cpeo.org
[mailto:brownfields-bounces@list.cpeo.org] On Behalf Of Lenny Siegel
Sent: Monday, June 20, 2005 6:57 PM
To: Brownfields Internet Forum
Subject: Re: [CPEO-BIF] The value of the annual National Brownfields
Conference

Submitted by Evans Paull EPaull@baltimoredevelopment.com

I would add a couple points to those made by others. My comments are from
the point of view of the experience-level of the participants.

First, I would start from the point of view of rookie or less-experienced
brownfields staff - the national conference is an extraordinary educational
opportunity for those who have been recently assigned to a
brownfields-related job.  I would speculate that almost no one is adequately
prepared for brownfields work by virtue of their college or grad school
education.  Brownfields is very inter-disciplinary, involving environmental
protection, business/economic development, real estate, public policy,
geology, and law.  A newly-assigned brownfields staff person may have
strength in one or two of these disciplines, but they will find much to
learn in the other areas, and the national conference is a really important
way to get that exposure.

Second, from the point of view of the more experienced brownfields staff
(myself included), the conference never fails to get my creative juices
flowing.  No, I don't need the primer on environmental insurance, but every
conference produces some new ideas, new contacts, new ways to address old
problems.  Let me offer up just one example: through the conference I have
met and exchanged cards with a number of businesses that offer
products/services related to fixed price/insurance-backed remediation. I am
now organizing a meeting of local brownfields interests, and I'm inviting
each of the these service providers to make short presentations - a little
match-making exercise that just might lead to a project getting done that
otherwise would have failed.

To generalize from this, the conference is a way for us to become aware of
resources, programs, and policies that we may not be aware of, but that help
us do our jobs better.

KEEP IT ANNUAL!!!!

Ev Paull, Director of the Brownfields Initiative Baltimore Development Corp.
36 S. Charles St - suite 1600
Baltimore, MD 21201
410-837-9310, ext 317
epaull@baltimoredevelopment.com
visit the brownfields section of the BDC website:
www.baltimoredevelopment.com/initiatives_brownfields.html


--
Lenny Siegel
Director, Center for Public Environmental Oversight c/o PSC, 278-A Hope St.,
Mountain View, CA 94041
Voice: 650/961-8918 or 650/969-1545
Fax: 650/961-8918
http://www.cpeo.org


_______________________________________________
Brownfields mailing list
Brownfields@list.cpeo.org
http://www.cpeo.org/mailman/listinfo/brownfields


Confidentiality Notice: This e-mail communication and any attachments may 
contain confidential and privileged information for the use of the 
designated recipients named above. If you are not the intended recipient, 
you are hereby notified that you have received this communication in error 
and that any review, disclosure, dissemination, distribution or copying of 
it or its contents is prohibited. If you have received this communication 
in error, please notify me immediately by replying to this message and 
deleting it from your computer. Thank you. 


_______________________________________________
Brownfields mailing list
Brownfields@list.cpeo.org
http://www.cpeo.org/mailman/listinfo/brownfields