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Parramore Activists Worry About Contaminated Sites

Activists gathered outside Parramore's community garden Tuesday morning to draw attention to contaminated sites in the area.

The sites include so called “super-fund sites” which were designated highly contaminated by the Environmental Protection Agency.

Orlando has received about $600,000 from the federal government to assess and clean up contaminated sites in Parramore, including $200,000 to remediate land at the Creative Village site

Mike Cantone, from the Fight Back Coalition, wants more of a focus on residential areas.

"Our awareness campaign is going to aim to bring more transparency to the process, bring more community awareness and outreach from the city, and then demand action from the city to actually help residents and not the developers,” said Cantone.

The Coalition says it's also concerned about the development of Creative Village and the planned MLS stadium.

Lawanna Gelzer believes the two development projects will force residents to move further west.

“Do they really want us here? No. they’ve done everything to move people out, at one time it was a community of 20,000 now it’s down to 6,300,” said Gelzer.

The event was timed to coincide with earth day, and marked the beginning of what activists say will be a year- long public awareness campaign.

A city spokesperson says a $400,000 EPA Brownfield assessment grant is currently being invested in Parramore to evaluate if properties are contaminated.

 

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