Brownfields Success Story Dishing Up a New Business Park Chester, West Virginia Located in the Northern Panhandle of West Virginia, the Taylor, Smith & Taylor (TS&T) Pottery Plant opened in 1900. Like many other pottery operations at the time, the TS&T Pottery Plant manufactured dinnerware, hotel ware, toilets and specialty pieces. Eventually, the company focused solely on dinnerware, which it continued producing until the plant closed in 1981. The plant was left vacant for more than 30 years, and harmful contaminants from the site's pottery production days remained. The Cleanup The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) awarded three grants covering assessments of the property, which identified lead and asbestos. These environmental hazards were addressed using funds from EPA Brownfield Cleanup Grants. EPA's support brought credibility to the project and helped attract public and private funding. The Business Development Corporation of the Northern Panhandle, which purchased the site in 2011, secured loans of $2 million from the West Virginia Economic Development Authority, $2.2 million from United Bank and $500,000 from the Hancock County Commissioners. Additional funding was provided by the Benedum Foundation, Northern West Virginia BroWnfields Assistance Center and Brooke-Hancock Regional Council. The Benefits With a clean slate for the 8.5-acre site and all funding in place, most of the old TS&T building was demolished. Construction of the first industrial building in the new Rock Springs Business Park began in 2016. In addition to creating 70 new jobs, the business park is expected to help spur economic growth among the area's energy, transportation and metal industries. &EPA United States Environmental Protection Agency ^1 I An artist's rendering of a building in the new Rock Springs Business Park. The park is expected to create 70 new jobs in the community. EPA Grant Recipients: Brooke-Hancock Regional Planning and Development Council, Business Development Corporation of the Northern Panhandle EPA Grant Types: Brownfield Assessment, Brownfield Cleanup Former Use: Pottery Plant Current Use: Business Park We're taking an abandoned pottery plant and completely transforming it. This development will be a real job creator for Hancock County and the Ohio River Valley. Mike Swartzmiller, Hancock County Commissioner For more information: Visit the EPA Brownfields website at www.epa.gov/brownfields or contact Joe Nowak at 215-814-3303 or Nowak.Joseph@epa.gov. ,5B0:-PWi21 October 201? ------- |