Client:
Lamar White
Projects Coordinator
City of Alexandria
Alexandria, Louisiana 71301
(318) 449-5007

The Ruston Foundry, a 6-acre site located on the east side of downtown Alexandria, was home to the Ruston Foundry Machine Shop from 1908 until 1985, when it finally shut its doors. Due to its long industrial use period, the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) initiated a study of the site to determine contamination levels. In May 1999, the EPA identified the Ruston Foundry site as a Superfund site, and placed it on the EPA’s priority list as a serious hazardous waste site.

The City of Alexandria, with the financial help of the EPA Superfund Redevelopment Initiative: Pilot Project, initiated a study to determine ways to clean up this site and transform this serious liability into a community asset. The City contracted Moore Planning Group, LLC (MPG) to help meet this task.

MPG engaged the community and various governmental and civic groups in the planning process, with the goal of determining the best possible solution for clean up and redevelopment of the Ruston Foundry site. The planning process responded to the following objectives:

• To review the physical properties of both on and off-site factors influencing the property's reuse
• To provide the local community with a means of participation in the determination and future use of the site
• To determine what land uses are possible, considering the site's past contamination
• To developed a land use plan for the site
• To work with the EPA and the Department of Environmental Quality (DEQ) to develop a remediation plan compatible with the future use as determined by the land use plan

After analyzing the site and working with the community to determine the best uses for the Ruston Foundry site, MPG developed two design schemes that would greatly benefit area residents and the city as a whole. Scheme # 1 called for light industrial park development. This plan would transform the site into a much-needed public open space, and also provide much-needed economic benefits to the area as a location for new commercial establishments.

Scheme #2 included a sports arena and light industrial park. This plan, a variation on Scheme #1, has all the amenities and benefits of the light industrial park, but features a sports arena that would provide space for downtown sporting and entertainment events. This plan benefits the city and area residents by providing jobs and economic benefits, as well as providing the city with a very attractive gateway from I-49.