Bit by bit, the city’s massive plan to find new use for contaminated and dilapidated parcels in downtown Shelton is moving forward.
In the latest step, the Shelton Economic Development Corporation will apply for a $200,000 federal grant to clean up ground water contamination at the Cel-lastik site on East Canal Street.
The SEDC is looking for community input on a draft application to help boost its chance of getting the grant.
“They look at community involvement,” in the award process, said James Ryan, the director for the SEDC, which acts on behalf of the city for the brownfield application and remediation process.
The public can weigh in on the draft application at a hearing at 7:30 p.m. Wednesday night. Ryan said written public comment will also be accepted before Wednesday. The hearing will be held at the SEDC headquarters at 475 Howe Ave.
(The application is available to view on Shelton’s home page.)
Big Plans
Where downtown used to be crowded with factories and manufacturing, now there are empty buildings and vacant lots.
(Click here to view a map of the area in the photo above.)
But reminders of the industrial past remain in the form of chemicals and contamination in the ground and the water.
City leaders have been working on a long-term plan to clean up those sites so the downtown can be redeveloped.
“Shelton’s made a very big commitment to bringing these sites online,” Ryan said.
The city wants to bring in mixed-use commercial and residential buildings, and add more public open space to the sites of former factories along the Housatonic River.
Much work has already been done, including a clean-up of the former B.F. Goodrich factory site, where a large park along the river now sits.
Next Step: Cel-Lastik
The Cel-Lastik parcel (the grassy area highlighted in yellow in the photo) has been used since 1870 for various manufacturing companies, which made everything from bolts and tacks to rubber and plastic gaskets there.
Now the city owns the land, and has decided to add it to adjacent open space along the Riverfront. The land has been covered with clean soil so the public can already use it for light recreation.
But underneath, contaminants remain in underground water and in the soil in some portions of the parcel.
The contaminants exist in levels considered by the Connecticut Department of Environmental Protection to be potential health risks if come into contact with, inhaled or leached into the water.
The contamination also can have a bad impact on the local environment, including the Housatonic River, where contaminated ground water can eventually end up.
The application says cleaning up the site is beneficials because it will also get rid of a blighted property and help bring more business downtown.
The grant money, if awarded, would be matched with $40,000 from the city, and would only address the ground water. Another $150,000 would be needed to clean up the soil.
Axton Cross Company
Because contamination doesn’t recognize property lines, Ryan said the SEDC plans to start work on the property adjacent to Cel-Lastik soon.
“All of the work will proceed by the end of the winter or spring,” Ryan said. “If at all possible, we hope to work on both sites at once.”
That land was once occupied by the Axton Cross Company, a chemical manufacturer. The site has more contamination than the Cel-Lastik site, but SEDC has already secured $425,000 from the state and $200,000 from the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency to pay for clean up there.
The city will be expected to match $70,000 between the two grants.
Environmental experts are determining how to best clean up the soil at Axton Cross, Ryan said. That property will eventually be sold and privately developed.
