City of Toledo Awarded $571,342 Grant from Ohio Brownfield Remediation Program

The City of Toledo has been awarded a $571,342 grant from the Ohio Brownfield Remediation Program to abate asbestos and demolish the city-owned building, formerly leased to the Toledo-Lucas County Regional Health District.

The 73-year-old building requires more than $10 million in capital improvements. In 2025, the Toledo-Lucas County Regional Health District announced plans to acquire the Diocese of Toledo's former Pastoral Center and relocate its operations there.

The award is part of a statewide $61 million announcement by Governor Mike DeWine covering 160 projects across 75 counties - the 11th round of funding since the program launched in 2021.

"This investment from the State of Ohio helps the City address a soon-to-be-vacant and functionally obsolete property in downtown Toledo," said Brandon Sehlhorst, Chief Growth Officer for the City of Toledo. "The funding will allow us to safely remove hazardous materials, eliminate a significant maintenance liability for the City, and improve the long-term condition of the site."

The project will remove hazardous materials, address structural deterioration, and position the 1.8-acre property for redevelopment. Cleanup is funded through the state's cleanup and remediation track, which received $45.8 million of this round's total.

Toledo has been an active participant in the Brownfield Remediation Program since its inception. In 2022, the city secured one Assessment Grant and seven Cleanup Grants totaling $22.8 million across Lucas County - among the largest local hauls in the program's first round - supporting projects including the Toledo Innovation Center, the Nicholas Building, and the North Towne site.

The Ohio Brownfield Remediation Program funds the assessment and cleanup of industrial, commercial, and institutional properties that are abandoned or underutilized due to known or potential contamination. Once remediated, sites are eligible for redevelopment to attract new economic investment. The program, part of Governor DeWine's Ohio BUILDS Initiative, has distributed nearly $780 million to 841 projects across 87 counties statewide.