Shapiro Administration to Help Turn Former Site of Municipal Incinerator into Shovel-Ready Site for Businesses in Luzerne County

The Greater Wilkes-Barre Industrial Fund will use the $980,500 Industrial Site Reuse Program (ISRP) grant for the removal of impacted soil at the site.

The Shapiro Administration is investing in projects like this one to create healthier communities and further strengthen Pennsylvania’s economy.

Harrisburg, PA – Today, Department of Community and Economic Development (DCED) Secretary Rick Siger announced the approval of $980,500 through the Industrial Sites Reuse Program (ISRP) to the Greater Wilkes-Barre Industrial Fund to clean up a former Municipal Incinerator site and help make way for new commercial property.

The ISRP grant will be used for the remediation of contaminated soils present at a former Municipal Incinerator site located on North Sherman Street in Wilkes-Barre. Once remediated, the site will include nearly three-acres of cleared and graded land ready for reuse as a commercial property. The remaining areas of the site will be capped and used for parking or staging cars to expand the current commercial operation of an adjacent property.

“The Shapiro Administration is committed to revitalizing former industrial sites, protecting our communities, and creating new opportunities for economic growth across Pennsylvania,” said Secretary Siger. “This investment in Wilkes-Barre will help remediate contaminated soil and transform an underutilized property into shovel-ready commercial space, positioning the site for future investment, business growth, and job creation in Luzerne County.”

“Restoring former industrial sites to productive use benefits the community by getting rid of blight, benefits the economy by bringing in new business, and benefits the environment by remediating contamination and preserving green spaces from development,” said DEP Secretary Jessica Shirley. “It’s a win-win-win for the area, getting rid of a polluted site and bringing new economic development while protecting valuable open space.”

For too long, hazardous waste sites, abandoned mine lands, and abandoned wells have sat vacant and released toxic chemicals into the environment because Pennsylvania didn’t have the resources or the speed to get projects up and running. The Shapiro Administration is working to fix that — building shovel-ready sites, cleaning up abandoned mine land and hazardous waste sites so communities can put those areas back to good use, and aggressively plugging abandoned or orphaned wells that are polluting our air and water.

The ISRP provides loans and grants for environmental assessments and remediation carried out by eligible applicants who did not cause or contribute to the contamination. The program is designed to support the cleanup of environmental contamination at industrial sites, thereby bringing dormant land into productive reuse.

For more information about DCED, visit the agency’s website, Facebook, X, and LinkedIn.

MEDIA CONTACT:
Kat Breitmayer, dcedpress@pa.gov
DEP Newsroom, RA-EPNEWS@pa.gov

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