Greater Ohio Policy Center

05/19/2026

ICYMI: Early Bird Registration is now open for the 2026 Ohio Active Transportation Conference.

The one-day conference will focus on bike and pedestrian infrastructure, funding and financing for complete streets infrastructure improvements, successful strategies for educating the public, and more.

Planners, engineers, local government leaders, and advocates will gather to learn, network, and gain the tools they need to build safer streets and vibrant communities in Ohio.

Register now and take advantage of the lowest prices of the season. Scholarship opportunities are available for those that qualify. Click below to learn more!

The one-day conference will focus on bike and pedestrian infrastructure, funding and financing for complete streets infrastructure improvements, successful strategies for educating the public, and more. Planners, engineers, local government leaders, and advocates will gather to learn, netwo

05/18/2026

05/15/2026

Yesterday, the Ohio Department of Development announced $61 million in Ohio Brownfield Remediation Program (BRP) grants to 75 counties.

These awards include $45.8 million for 84 site clean-ups and $15.3 million for 76 assessment projects.

The Brownfield Remediation Program was created by the Ohio General Assembly in 2021 and has received a total of $900 million in funding over the past 5 years. GOPC has been a long-time and leading nonprofit advocate for the BRP.

To date, nearly $780 million in grants have been awarded to 841 projects in 87 of 88 Ohio Counties.

Funding awarded through the BRP is used to assess and clean up industrial, commercial, and institutional brownfield sites that are abandoned, idled, or underutilized due to a known or potential release of hazardous substances or petroleum. Following site remediation, properties can be redeveloped to revitalize neighborhoods and attract new economic development.

Following today’s awards announcement, 46 counties have Brownfield Remediation Program set-aside funding remaining, up to $1 million per county. Applications for additional projects in these counties will open May 18, 2026.

Applications will open from 10 a.m. May 18, 2026, through 11:59 p.m. on June 5. Remaining counties with available funding must submit new applications for future awards. Previously submitted applications will not be updated.

https://development.ohio.gov/home/news-and-events/all-news/2026-0514-governor-dewine-announces-61-million-in-brownfield-remediation-grants-to-communities-in-75-counties

05/13/2026

Last week, Greater Ohio Policy Center (GOPC), in partnership with presenting sponsor the Ohio Environmental Protection Agency (OEPA) hosted the 2026 Ohio Brownfields Conference. This years event, the fourth since GOPC began hosting the event in 2023, saw more than 300 attendees joining together to make the conference a success.

This year, we honored two of the lawmakers who helped to guarantee the future of the program, State Representatives Brian Stewart (R- Ashville) and Bride Sweeney (D- Cleveland).

The leadership and support of dedicated public servants like Representative’s Sweeney and Stewart is why programs like the BRP can thrive and revitalize Ohio communities.

Thank you to everyone who helped to make the 2026 Ohio Brownfields Conference a success, including a sincere thank you to our 41 sponsors who made the conference possible, and our panelists for sharing their knowledge and insights to make the day educational, informative, and relevant.

https://www.greaterohio.org/blog/2026/5/12/more-than-300-attend-2026-ohio-brownfields-conference

05/12/2026

TRAC members have a difficult job. This year they had to decide among 27 project requests, totaling $640.2 million. These requests included projects as diverse as the Western Hills Viaduct, new light rail cars in Cleveland, and roadway expansions in rural eastern Ohio.

More than 55,000 vehicles a day use the Viaduct to travel between the west side of Cincinnati and Downtown and Uptown, two significant job hubs in the region.

Preparatory work for the new Viaduct has already begun and the first phase of construction, which will set the pylon foundations for the new Viaduct, kicks off this spring.

Despite being a critically important project for the city and region, a worthy, Tier 1, project like the Viaduct was not funded. So what was?

Check out our opinion piece on Soapbox Cincinnati from GOPC's Jason Warner to learn more.

The only funded project in the Cincinnati region is a proposed interchange area that is currently farm fields.

05/11/2026

Throughout the month of May, events are celebrating one of our favorite forms of active transportation. These events include Bike to Work Week, celebrated May 11 - 17, with National Bike to Work Day on Friday, May 15, 2026.

Learn more about some of the exciting events taking place around Ohio this month - and don't forget, registration for the 2026 Ohio Active Transportation Conference opens on Monday, May 18!

https://www.greaterohio.org/blog/2026/5/7/may-is-national-bike-month-bike-safety-month

05/08/2026

ICYMI: GOPC is excited to host the 2026 Ohio Active Transportation Conference on Wednesday, September 2, 2026 in Dublin!

Thanks to the extraordinary generosity and leadership of the Ohio Department of Transportation, a limited number of 50% off scholarships are available to help employees of local governments and nonprofits from across Ohio attend this can’t-miss event.

This is more than a discount—it’s a major investment by ODOT in the people shaping Ohio’s transportation future. Their support is opening the door for communities of all sizes to access cutting-edge knowledge, innovative strategies, and peer connections that can transform local transportation systems.

Eligible participants include:
• Elected officials
• Staff in public sector organizations, like local government, public health, public transit, etc.
• Nonprofit staff

📣 But don’t wait—only the first 100 eligible registrants will receive this scholarship. Once they’re gone, they’re gone.

Apply here for a scholarship powered by ODOT.

https://forms.cloud.microsoft/Pages/ResponsePage.aspx?id=QRXAX6zkLEibpLj7Ue6mjRiwp3IlhrFLrGsiw242SUFUNkhDVEtQMjVUTUVWVlBaSEdLWkNZRVIyWC4u

05/07/2026

GOPC was proud to honor State Representative Bride Rose Sweeney and at yesterday's Ohio Brownfield Conference. Their hard work defending the Brownfield Remediation Program in 2025 ensured $200 million would be invested in the program over the two year budget cycle.

We are honored to be able to work with lawmakers like Representative's Sweeney and Stewart to improve quality of life and economic opportunity with programs like the BRP at the Ohio Statehouse!

05/07/2026

Thank you to everyone who came out yesterday for the 2026 Ohio Brownfield Conference. It was an amazing day with incredible panel sessions, networking opportunities, and much, more more.

We will have a more in-depth recap in the next few days, but we wanted to give another shout-out to our generous sponsors who helped to make this event possible each and every year.

Thank you to AKT Peerless, Alliance Technical Group, Allied Environmental Services, Inc., Blue River Environmental & Restoration Services, Inc, Bricker Graydon Wyatt, Buckeye Elm Contracting, Burns & McDonnell, COCIC: Franklin County Land Bank / COCLT: Central Ohio Community Land Trust, Environmental Remediation Contractor, E-Tank, Ltd. (& E-Pump), Envision Group, Eurofins, KSU TAB - Technical Assistance to Brownfields, Metiri Group, Microbac Laboratories, Inc., OCCH, O'ROURKE WRECKING COMPANY, Pace® Analytical Services, Patriot Engineering and Environmental, Inc., Project Management Consultants LLC (PMC), Provectus Environmental Products, Inc., REGENESIS Remediation Solutions, SGS, SMEUSA, and Tetra Tech, Bronze Sponsors of the 2026 Ohio Brownfields Conference!

05/06/2026

Final round of panels for the Conference are underway. Sessions include Landbanks and Brownfields, Managing Ongoing Liabilities Post-Remediation, and Small Community Partnerships and VAP.

Thank you to all our attendees this year, as well as to our sponsors who help to make the conference possible. We appreciate your ongoing support.

05/06/2026

First round of afternoon breakout sessions underway at the Conference. Sessions this hour include Industrial Brownfield Redevelopment, Brightfields, and Post-CNS Obligations