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MAJOR CHESTER, PA
BROWNFIELDS
REDEVELOPMENT PROJECT ANNOUNCED
As previously
reported in the RT REVIEW, many Brownfields Land Recycling
projects are underway in Chester, PA, one of Pennsylvania’s
cities in major need of redevelopment initiatives.
For more than a
decade, Delaware County and Chester city officials have touted
the development prospects of the section of waterfront where
the Delaware River runs through Chester.
Prospective
investors have heard about the proximity to major highways and
the airport, its untapped potential as a recreational area,
and the open spaces left by the decline of the industrial
giants that once lined the riverbanks. But no one seemed to be
listening, or have the funds needed to pull off a major
undertaking in a city where the biggest riverfront
construction projects in recent years were a state prison and
a trash incinerator.
In October, that
changed with the announcement by Preferred Real Estate
Investments, Inc. of Conshohocken that it would invest $300
million into turning 150 acres of land around the old PECO
Energy generating station just south of the Commodore Barry
Bridge into more than a million square feet of office space,
two marinas with restaurants and shops, two sports facilities,
and new housing.
The project will
benefit from the designation of 20 acres as a Keystone
Opportunity Zone, where all state, county and city real estate
and corporate taxes would be forgiven until 2010.
The centerpiece of
the redevelopment would be the renovation of the nine-story
former power plant, an ornate waterfront landmark with twin
towers that was built in 1916 and closed in 1981. It is to be
renovated at a cost of more than $30 million and will house
400,000 square feet of office space.
Preferred officials
said the complex could employ 3,000 people and create 500
construction jobs along the way.
While a huge boost
for Chester, the project would also represent the first time
that one of the aging industrial plants that line the Delaware
between Philadelphia an the Delaware state line has been
converted to an entirely new use.
City officials say
they hope the development, to be called the Wharf at
Rivertown, could help Chester evolve from a declining
postindustrial city of 40,000 into a riverfront recreation
destination.
"This is an
agreement by a developer with a track record of success —
success on a fast track," Chester Mayor Dominic F. Pileggi
said in City Council chambers as he introduced Michael
O’Neill, president of Preferred. "We intend to direct the
energy from this development inward from the riverfront to
completely revitalize the city." O’Neill said that the
renovation of the former power plant would begin early next
year.
PECO had agreed to
sell 63 acres it owns along the waterfront, from a few hundred
feet south of the Commodore Barry Bridge to Highland
Avenue. The price was not disclosed. Seven acres just
south of the bridge will be donated to the city for a
waterfront park next to an existing boat launch, the only
public one in the county.
O’Neill said it
would take about 21/2 years to renovate the power plant. One
of two office buildings to be built next to it will probably
be put up during that time, he said. The marina, which would
have space for 100 or more boats and about 100,000 square feet
of retail space, would begin construction in early 2002, after
PECO has completed a $10 million cleanup of the site, once
home to a steel mill and a coke plant.
(Phila. Inquirer,
10/14 & 16/00)
RT is assisting the
City of Chester with the Land Recycling and Brownfields
process.
A portion of the
site is under RCRA corrective action due to the presence of a
former hazardous waste treatment facility at the site. All
indications are that EPA, DEP, PECO, Preferred and the City of
Chester will work together to provide improved public river
access and environmentally sound redevelopment, recognizing
the property’s industrial heritage. RT is honored to help the
City of Chester on this important project
-Gary
Brown
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