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Pocono News Section
Abandoned Factory Could Get New Life
Abandoned Factory Could Get New Life - Tuesday, October 16, 2007 at 4:46PM EST
Reported by: Laurie Monteforte
Tuesday, Oct 16, 2007 @04:46pm EST
EAST STROUDSBURG - For 15 years it has rotted and rusted in East Stroudsburg. But soon the International Boilerworks building could have anew owner, thanks to a grant that will help clean poisoned soil.
The run down building was once the hub of commerce in East Stroudsburg. It was one of the biggest boiler manufacturers in the country. That was a century ago. Now it's abandoned.
WBRE News took a trip to the historic factory. There's not much left. Some rusty equipment, burned furniture, and plenty of broken glass.
Chuck Leonard from the Pocono Mountains Economic Development Corporation said, "It's a blighted site, it's a site that's falling apart, it's very unattractive."
Fifteen years ago the place was filled with the hustle and bustle of about 200 workers operating big machines. Today, it seems like the only equipment anyone uses at the factory are spray paint cans.
When the Boilerworks moved out, the owners didn't just leave machinery. They left contaminants in the ground. That's prevented potential buyers from moving in and fixing the place. Until now. The Pocono PMEDC recently received a grant, more than $150,000 to clean the soil. Officials tell WBRE that's the missing puzzle piece that will make the site hot real estate.
Leonard explained, "It's ten industrially zoned acres right at the heart of where the workforce is, where the utilities are, where the rail line is, with good access to highways, etceteras."
It's also right next to the Monroe County Head Start Program building. Managers there were happy to hear the neighborhood eyesore and mischief magnet could soon be sold.
Director Tim Lee said, "This is really exciting for us."
Exciting for them and the rest of East Stroudsburg.
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