EGLE brownfield grant ensures contaminated site safe for expansion of Grand Rapids school

The Michigan Department of Environment, Great Lakes, and Energy (EGLE) is awarding a $745,000 Brownfield Redevelopment Grant to a project that will help Grand Rapids University Preparatory Association (GRUPA) expand its University Preparatory Academy. GRUPA plans to add a Learning and Wellness Center that will allow it to increase capacity and offer more services to students.

“The City of Grand Rapids Brownfield Redevelopment Authority supports the partnership with EGLE on this grant to support the University Preparatory Academy project” said Sarah Rainero, executive director of the Grand Rapids Brownfield Redevelopment Authority. “EGLE has been a strong partner in Grand Rapids, and this project will help continue the city’s momentum along Division (Avenue South) by activating key infill opportunities.”

The middle and high school at 512 Division Avenue South opened in 2012. It’s grown significantly over the last few years and is now at capacity. The $7.4 million redevelopment project will create a 10,158 square foot expansion with classrooms, labs, extra learning space, expanded student health programs, and a basketball/volleyball gym. The new parking lot will have an underground stormwater management system.

The EGLE grant will be used to remove contamination left behind by former businesses on the site, including a gas station, auto repair shop, and small manufacturing companies. Environmental assessments done through EGLE’s Expanded Triage Program and Brownfield Site Assessment Program found petroleum contamination in soil and groundwater, and metals in fill material that was brought on the site when older buildings were torn down.

Grant money will pay for additional environmental assessments, removal of contaminated soil, and demolition needed to prepare the property for the planned expansion.

Brain Cloyd, board chair of the Grand Rapids University Preparatory Association, said, “The Grand Rapids University Preparatory Academy Learning and Wellness Center represents a transformative investment in both people and place. This project will convert an underutilized property into a vibrant, purpose-driven space that supports student success, community wellness, and long-term neighborhood revitalization. We are grateful for EGLE’s partnership in helping us responsibly address environmental conditions so that this site can fully serve future generations. This is exactly how thoughtful redevelopment should work – remediating the past while building opportunity for the future.”

Grand Rapids University Preparatory Association says the Learning and Wellness Center will be accessible to students from throughout the district and neighboring communities. Construction is expected to be finished in the fall of 2027, and students should be able to start using it that fall.

More than half of EGLE’s annual budget supports local projects, protects public health and the environment, and helps create economic growth and jobs for Michigan workers. Redevelopment increases the value of brownfield sites and other nearby properties. In 2025, the EGLE Brownfield program provided more than $23 million in brownfield incentives to 76 projects in 52 Michigan communities. These projects are projected to create more than 440 housing units, 600 jobs, and result in more than $675 million in capital investment.