Packerton Yard future???

Last year Carbon Cty purchased the old land that was Packerton Yard. They are trying to spark an industrial development of the area. There is also talk of demolishing the large LCL warehouse. Does anyone have any more news? I don't know how they can use the land it's so contaminated. I'd like to see the LCL building fixed up and reused! Problem is the area is rather financially depressed and they've tried other industrial motivators for the past 50 years and no industry ever moved in.

The other problem is that the land is located in a flood plane. This site has a lot of factors running against it.

Flood Plane... good luck getting real estate loans or insurance.

i was showing a friend the storehouse (not for LCL, but for carshop supplies) last week. wanted him to see the employee signatures on the 2nd floor walls. ran into wayne nothstein who was driving thru the yards. he's one of the 3 county commissioners. he'd like to see it saved and reused. the other 2 commissioners are in favor of seeing it demolished. as far as being a flood plane, it hasn't been too bad since the Walter dam was constructed above white haven years ago. even in 1955, during hurrican diane, which was worse than agnes, only part of the lower end was under water. nothing else.

as far as contamination... quite a few test bores were dug. only three came up as contaminated, mostly with petroleum. that's what was in the paper here in lehighton at least.

later,

micah

From the morning call newspaper:

http://www.mcall.com/news/local/all-b1_ ... rint.story

October 6, 2006
Outlet offer can't save train shop
County votes 2-1 to raze building despite bid to renovate it.
By Sarah Fulton Special to The Morning Call

Despite a last-minute offer from a developer to convert a hulking former train-repair shop into outlet stores similar to those in Reading, Carbon County commissioners voted Thursday to demolish the building.

Commissioners voted 2-1 to award a $67,000 contract to Flynn Demolition of Pottsville to tear down the 21,000-square-foot former rail building at Packerton Yards in Lehighton and Mahoning Township so the county can market the 57-acre site as a location for industrial development.

Commissioner Wayne Nothstein voted against the contract, saying the county should not waste tax dollars to tear down a structure in which developers have expressed interest.

Commissioners revealed Thursday that they were approached by officials from Dominion Development Group of southern New Jersey, the same company proposing to build hundreds of cabins and homes on a mountain in Summit Hill, with a plan to reuse the old building.

Nothstein and Commissioner Charles Getz met with Larry Masi of Dominion, who they said proposed rehabilitating the building to install shops similar to outlet stores in Reading that are housed in old brick factories.

Getz and Commissioner Chairman William O'Gurek want to remove the dilapidated century-old structure so developers would find the site attractive for manufacturing. Getz said the sale of the building is unrealistic because it would require at least $300,000 for a new roof and floors.

Getz said Masi's proposal didn't offer a plan to pay for the renovation of the building, and it is unclear who would shoulder the cost.

Nothstein said developers should be given a chance to buy the structure. He made a motion Thursday to table awarding the demolition contract until people interested in the site could be contacted. The motion died when it was not seconded.

''Why would you want to tear down something that you may have people interested in purchasing?'' Nothstein asked fellow commissioners. ''Why would you want to spend that money?''

Getz said the rail yard was for sale for 24 years until the county bought it. The building needs a new roof, the upstairs and downstairs floors are caving in, the windows are broken and there are huge holes in the walls where people have stolen bricks.

''It's being ripped apart,'' Getz said.

O'Gurek said there are enough shops in the area, particularly in Jim Thorpe, Lehighton and Mahoning Township surrounding Packerton Yards. He said he would like to generate manufacturing jobs, and removing the building will prepare the site for a new future.

''It's cost-prohibitive to think that building can be put back to good use,'' O'Gurek said.

Commissioners are unsure when demolition will take place. O'Gurek estimated it would be done by spring.

In another matter Thursday, commissioners officially hired Gary Williams to work as the manager of the county 911 Communications Center at a $34,216 annual salary. Williams was assistant manager to Mary Kruzik, who resigned last month.

Lee Marzen, the center's addressing coordinator, will fill the position of assistant manager at a salary of $14.78 an hour.

Commissioners also accepted $815,232 in federal Community Development Block Grant funds to help make infrastructure improvements in low-income areas of local municipalities. The grant was slightly reduced from last year's, as the federal government has cut back the program.

Franklin Township will get $101,551; Jim Thorpe $108,367; Lansford $101,393; Lehighton $117,272; and Palmerton $113,761. The municipalities automatically qualify for grants because they have more than 4,000 residents. The remaining $272,888 will be doled out to Kidder, Lower Towamensing, East Penn and Mahoning townships and Weatherly and Nesquehoning, which applied for assistance for specific projects.

Sarah Fulton is a freelance writer.

this is why i hate small town party politics. the party affiliation means nothing, it's only a vehicle to take sides...

a55holes

micah

The area's dead whether or not they try to develop this land. Take a look at the vacancy rates around town. Waste of time and money in my mind.

Why does everyone say this was a "shop" or "train repair" buildling. It was not. It was an LCL building for customers in Hazleton. The shops were outdoors. That's why all the cement sidewalks are around.

I say storehouse because enough of my neighbors worked there that I know what it was. It was a storehouse for the carshops, which were outside...

http://www.mcall.com/news/local/all-b1_ ... 1948.story

Developer calls Packerton 'gateway'
Dominion builder says best use of Carbon site is not industrial.
By Sarah Fulton Special to The Morning Call
A New Jersey builder envisioned turning the former Packerton rail yard into a riverfront shopping and arts center as part of a resort development that would have been a gateway to the tourist attractions of Jim Thorpe while helping to revitalize Lehighton's downtown shopping district.

To do that, Dominion Development — the same builders planning a 240-unit cabin resort development in Summit Hill — told Carbon County it would secure the needed funding and renovate the historic, hulking, century-old train repair shop at the site and fill it with boutiques.

In fact, Dominion's Larry Masi said Packerton Yard, a 57-acre site in Lehighton and Mahoning Township, was the first Carbon County site he perused.

But Carbon County commissioners rejected Masi's proposal, saying they want Packerton Yards to be developed as an industrial site.

''This particular site is a mile of riverfront property and deserves to be developed in a way that's harmonious with the river,'' Masi said Monday, days after commissioners voted Thursday to spend $67,000 in state grant money to tear down the 20,000-square-foot rail building at the site.

Commissioner Chairman William O'Gurek and Commissioner Charles Getz envision the site as an industrial opportunity that could revitalize the region. Commissioners bought the property for $350,000 from Joseph and Betty Zaprazny in 2005.

The county has gotten a total $675,000 in state and federal funds to buy, study and improve the site and plans to use some of the money to pay for the demolition.

Getz and Commissioner Wayne Nothstein met with Masi, but O'Gurek declined, saying he feels the site suits industry with its rail access and proximity to the Northeast Extension of the Pennsylvania Turnpike. Getz has said he agrees with O'Gurek in preparing the site for industry.

Nothstein, however, opposed the demolition, saying the county shouldn't waste money to demolish a building a developer is interested in using.

O'Gurek said Tuesday the county needs to attract manufacturing businesses that pay a living wage for families, such as the Kovatch Corp., a firetruck manufacturer, or Ametek, a plastics company, both now in Nesquehoning.

''We think we can attract similar-type companies that would help families tremendously,'' O'Gurek said.

A New Jersey development company, J.G. Petrucci, has expressed interest in leasing land and constructing a building at the site.

''Why would they make that investment if it would not be profitable?'' O'Gurek said. ''These guys are not novices to industrial development.''

Masi said tearing down the existing building to lure industry is absurd. He said Carbon County has an excess of industrial sites that sit vacant, and Packerton Yards should not be marketed for industry. He said the commissioners should do an ''absorption study'' to determine the amount of vacant industrial property in the county and the rate it will take for it to sell, based on market trends.

Rather, Masi said, Packerton Yards should be developed for riverfront shopping, an arts center and resort living. He said resort developments and shops — not industrial developments — bring tourists and travelers to the region to spend money.

Masi said his company would get financing to rehab the building for shops and possibly an arts center. He said the county would not have to pay for anything.

''It's a comprehensive development plan that we believe will bring thousands of revenue dollars, perhaps millions of revenue dollars, to the region,'' Masi said. ''We believe the Packerton Yards site is really the gateway to Jim Thorpe. It's not something that should be taken lightly.''

Thousands of tourists drive past the site on their way to Jim Thorpe, the Victorian borough that has successfully marketed itself as a shopping, arts, history and outdoor recreation destination.

Packerton Yards could attract visitors because it is on the Lehigh River and has access to the historic canal trail, which is popular with hikers and bikers, Masi said. He said such a development could help spur economic development along First Street in Lehighton, where ''businesses feel second string to Jim Thorpe.''

''The highest and best use of Packerton Yards is not industrial buildings,'' Masi said. ''It would be a shame to do that.''

Dominion Development's proposed resort community of cabins and homes on a mountainside in Summit Hill — for which it is developing plans for submission — has met with mixed reactions there, with some residents fearing it will spoil the area's natural state and beauty and bring overcrowding and other problems related to residential development.

But Packerton Yards has already been used for industrial purposes and tests have found its former use as a railroad yard has already left it contaminated by petroleum — though it could be remediated by capping the tainted soil.

Masi said his company has heard no response from commissioners, but remains interested in developing the site commercially. O'Gurek said as far as he is concerned, the county has no need to discuss the matter further with Masi.

''We bought that property and it's owned by the county and we've been elected by the people of this county to make decisions on their behalf,'' O'Gurek said. ''Our decision is to use that property for industrial purposes.''

well that's just cute Billy... thanks a ton.

i'd say i agree with Masi on this one.

if tom gerhard had run again, this wouldn't have happened, as o'gurek would be working at mcdonald's...`

Yes, another new article.

The county officials now need to justify the demolition to the state Historical and Museum Commission.....

http://www.mcall.com/news/local/all-b1_ ... 5170.story

From The Morning Call
October 17, 2006
Packerton Yards shop-razing plan hits snag
Carbon County may have to justify project to state historians.
By Sarah Fulton Special to The Morning Call
Carbon County commissioners, who already have awarded a $67,000 contract to raze a historic train repair shop in former Packerton Yards it wants to develop as an industrial site, may need state historical officials' permission to tear down the building.

The state Department of Community and Economic Development said in a statement issued in reply to a reporter's questions that, because the purchase, environmental studies and planned demolition at the site in Lehighton and Mahoning Township were funded by state and federal dollars, county officials have to justify the demolition to the state Historical and Museum Commission.

A total of $675,000 has been obtained to buy and work on the 57-acre site.

DCED said the county could be required to file extensive reports showing that public comment on the project was solicited and that the structure is truly unsuitable for rehabilitation or redevelopment.

Commissioners Chairman William O'Gurek said he was unaware of any such process until being told by a reporter.

He said county Planning Director Fred Osifat contacted DCED to inquire about the requirements.

''We will be discussing that,'' O'Gurek said. ''We certainly want to adhere to the laws and regulations.''

The 21,000-square-foot repair shop is more than a century old and was deemed eligible by the Historical Museum Commission for the Historic National Register. The U.S. National Historic and Preservation Act and state laws require historic structures to be considered when government funded projects take place.

Officials at the museum commission would review the site and recommend whether the county should preserve the building. DCED officials said they would determine whether there are historic resources present and if the project would negatively affect those historic resources.

DCED has received no project reports from the Carbon County commissioners arguing in favor of the demolition.

State approval is the second stumbling block for commissioners' plans to raze the building to prepare the site for industrial development.

Last Tuesday, Lancaster area arts developer and a financier filed a court petition seeking a temporary injunction to stop demolition of the train repair shop. Commissioners on Oct. 5 voted to pay Flynn Demolition of Pottsville $67,000 to tear down the building. A hearing on the request is scheduled for 1:15 p.m. Thursday in Carbon County Court.

April M. Koppenhaver of Mulberry Art Studios and Bruce L. Clark of the Clark Group, a financial firm in New Holland, Lancaster County, have proposed converting the Packerton Yards building into an arts center as part of a bigger resort and commercial development.

Dominion Development of New Jersey also has proposed developing the site for mixed residential and commercial activities, including use of the repair shop as an outlet center similar to those in Reading. Koppenhaver and Clark have said they would work with the developer.

The old building has been vacant for 24 years. It needs floors, a roof, windows, electricity and some brick walls rebuilt.