Coralville Brownfields Map Viewer

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This EPA Brownfield Assessment Grant targets 200 acres along the First Avenue industrial corridor in east Coralville. The area serves as a regional gateway to the City from the Iowa Interstate 80 transportation corridor. EPA selected the City of Coralville for a Brownfields Pilot in the 1998 round of federal grants.

Coralville is located on the west bank of the Iowa River in eastern Iowa. The City began as a mill town in 1843 and industrial land use in the area grew throughout the 1950s. Since the future growth of the City is limited by a lack of annexable, developable land, Coralville is seeking to restore and reuse existing industrial properties.

In 1995, a Coralville Community Plan identified 10 urban areas within the City as candidates for redevelopment. The Grant targets two of these properties - the Coral Industrial Park and the Iowa River Power Plant Area - comprising approximately 200 acres along the 1st Avenue corridor. Currently, the target area is occupied by commercial property including a concrete mixing operation, a lumber company, railroad storage facilities, an electrical substation, and an old municipal dump. A variety of mixed-use properties, including residential areas, light industrial businesses, and vacant buildings and land comprise the area. While environmental contamination on these properties is unknown, redevelopment of the Grant area is hindered by the perception of contamination. The City considers the redevelopment and revitalization of the 1st Avenue corridor essential to the future growth and prosperity of the community.

Since the original pilot grant in 1999, the City of Coralville has received 12 additional grants, totaling near 2.5 million dollars from the EPA to aid in brownfields assessment and redevelopment.


The City's overall objective is to create the opportunity for economic revitalization along 1st Avenue, which will improve transportation flow, aesthetic appearance, and services. The Grant is the first step in this larger community planning effort to develop a more sustainable community. To this end, the Grant was intended to identify and assess brownfields properties along 200 acres of the 1st Avenue corridor area. The City then plans to work with private owners to acquire, clean up or redevelop several of these properties along the industrial corridor in order to rejuvenate existing or attract additional commercial and retail businesses to the area. Other properties along the Iowa River are also being considered by the City for future redevelopment and revitalization.

The properties within the area of the Brownfields Assessment Grant are grouped into six conceptual zones for handling and organizing information. Groupings are based on similar land use patterns for the purpose of reference and to make final data presentation more manageable. The project zones are conceptual and are not related to any city, county or state designations. The discrete boundaries are not significant in their detailed location; properties on either side of a zone boundary are not necessarily of differing environmental significance.

Zone 1: Central Area Of The Grant
An area bounded east by the Iowa River, west by 1st Avenue, north by East 7th Street and south by 5th Street Place East. The area is generally characterized by abandoned and vacant property of former industrial and rail-related use with light commercial and retail use along 1st Avenue. This zone includes extensive "on ground" coal storage at the CRANDIC site.

Zone 2: Northern Area Of The Grant
An area bounded east by Quarry Road, west by 1st Avenue, south by East 7th Street, and north by the Interstate I-80. This zone was the primary focus of Coralville's initial Brownfield efforts and the EPA Brownfields Assessment Pilot Grant in 1998. The area formerly contained Coral Industrial Park. Today, nearly all properties in this zone have been assessed using Assessment Grant funds the City received from the US EPA. The area is predominantly greenspace with most parcels ready for unrestricted redevelopment.

Zone 3: Eastern Area Of The Grant
An area bounded east and southeast by the Iowa River and west by Quarry Road. This zone is most easterly zone of Coralville's Brownfield Zones. Through Brownfields funding this zone has eliminated fears of environmental contamination and redeveloped into the Marriot Hotel and Conference Center and Riverbend -a mixed use development. Additionally in this zone, Edgewater Drive residential parcels located on the Iowa River were severely damaged by the flooding of the Iowa River in June 2008. The majority of these homes have been purchased and demolished by the City through the FEMA buyout program. The properties will become perpetual greenspace for the community.
The redevelopment of this area received national accolades in 2007 receiving the Phoenix Award for EPA Region 7 and the People's Choice Award at the Brownfields 2006 Conference in Detroit. Read more about the prestigious award here.

Zone 4: Southern Area Of The Grant
An area bounded east by the Iowa River, west by 1st Avenue and the extension of 3rd Avenue, north by 5th Street Place East and south by Clear Creek. The area is generally characterized by former heavy industrial and power-related use, current commercial occupancy and a segment west of 1st Avenue that includes inactive commercial property and former use as a municipal dump or landfill. The eastern and southern portions abutting the Iowa River and Clear Creek appear to be comprised of historically "made land", the result of extensive filling. Property along the Iowa River has been observed to contain more than ten feet of fills comprised of undifferentiated rubble and concrete demolition debris.
Zone 4 received heavy damages from the flooding of the Iowa River in 2008. On August 31, the City of Coralville was awarded $27.1 million in funding through IJOBS for recovery and protection of the First Avenue corridor.
The project includes replacement of the First Avenue Bridge over Clear Creek in Zone 4 and expansion of First Avenue to five lanes from 6th Street south to Clear Creek. Click here for a map of the First Avenue Improvements.

Zone 5: Western Area Of The Grant
5a: An area bounded east by 1st Avenue and running from 9th Street south to Clear Creek. The southern residential area of this zone received heavy damages from the 2008 flooding. As a result, the City of Coralville purchased many of the properties and demolished the remaining structures. The area is currently undergoing a comprehensive planning process for the area known as Old Town Coralville. For updates of the planning process, click here.
5b: An area bounded east by Hughes Street, west and southwest by CRANDIC Railroad and north by US Interstate 80. The undeveloped area was formerly home to a residential landfill. Current plans for this zone the relocation of the City of Coralville's Parks and Transit Department's Maintenance Facility. The facility was formerly located north of Clear Creek between 1st and 4th Avenues and received heavy damages during the flood of 2008.
5c: An area bounded east by 8th Avenue, west by 10th Avenue and north by 5th Street and south by Highway 6. The zone is comprised of residential and commercial properties. The center of the zone was formerly a mobile home park. The City has used Brownfield funds to assess environmental impacts on the site; assessments have shown the site is suitable for unrestricted redevelopment.

Zone 6: Northern/Southern Edge of the Grant
6a: An area bounded east by 1st Avenue, west by Clear Creek, north by Highway 6 and south by the Rock Island and Pacific Railroad. The zone is comprised of commercial and light to heavy industrial land uses. To date, no brownfields assessment funds have been targeted in this area.
6b: A strip of land running south of US Interstate 80 from the CRANDIC Railroad east to 1st Avenue. Currently, none of this zone has been developed.

Zone 7: Far West Area Of The Grant
An area bounded southeast by the Iowa Interstate Railroad, west by Westcor Drive, north by 2nd Street/Highway 6 and south by the Iowa Interstate Railroad. The zone is comprised of general industrial land use. To date, no brownfields assessment funds have been targeted in this area.