PICKENS — The City of Pickens is asking for community leaders’ help in applying for an EPA Brownfield Cleanup Grant to improve the Doodle Trail trailhead property at the corner of S.C. Highway 8 and Railroad Street.

The EPA recently permitted cleanup applications for the removal of asbestos and lead-based paint, which made Pickens eligible to apply for a grant to remove some or all of the old railroad buildings at the trailhead.

An email sent to leaders of area businesses and organizations by city administrator Bruce Evilsizor this week asked for help from “community partners” for the project.

As part of the brownfield application process, the city of Pickens must submit letters of support from community partners before Dec. 4.

A letter of support should try and address some or all of the following points, Evilsizor wrote in his email.

• The importance of removing asbestos and lead-based paint from a building that is near the downtown, Doodle Trail and some residential neighborhoods.

• Mention of the Pickens community not having a lot of money and financial help needed to cleanup this property.

• The community trying hard to revitalize the area and make the property a safe, clean and healthy connector between the bike trail and downtown.

• The cleanup removing blight in a key part of the city.

“When scoring the grant applications, the EPA places a high priority on the level of community partners for the project, and this is often the deciding factor on whether the application is funded or not,” Evilsizor wrote. “The EPA’s goal is to have community partners that have some active role in the local cleanup project. Since the cleanup effort is a part of the Doodle trailhead project, the partnership commitment can be related to both the cleanup and the end result of a trailhead that promotes active living, is environmentally safe, adds value to the community, etc.”

The email gave some ideas on how leaders could help show they are a “community partner” in their letters of support.

• Agree to help educate the community by distributing information about the project from the application phase to the finished product (we’ll keep you informed along the way).

• Offer in-kind support specific to your field of interest or expertise to the cleanup and end use of the project (e.g. healthy living, active living, environmental-friendly designing of the trailhead, historic education of rail yard).

• Financial support (sorry this was in the EPA document but you know we’ll always take it). This does not have to be anything large but could be a fundraiser that raises money but also educates the community.

• If the blight and safety concerns of the old buildings are a problem in your eyes, your letter can talk about this issue and how you support the effort to redevelop this property into something healthy, safe and good for the community.

• The EPA realizes there will be community organizations that cannot be an active partner and in these cases, they do appreciate a letter of support.

Along with a community partner support letter, Evilsizor asked member of the community to attend a public meeting for the brownfield project on Dec. 14 at 3 p.m. at City Hall and show support, because he said as part of the application, the city will need to show how many people attended the public meeting, along with the comments given.

Along with the Brownfield grant, the city is also applying for two other grants to extend the trail to Highway 8 downtown, construct restrooms, make green space and dress up the entrance at Highway 8. Letters are not needed for these two grants, but Evilsizor said officials appreciate community support.

He said the conceptual design of the trailhead will be coming soon.

“This design will get us started and as the grant funding develops, the final design will be configured,” Evilsizor wrote.