The former Nicolet Industries' asbestos factory is going green, over two decades after the Ambler asbestos factory shut down. The Inquirer reported yesterday that, thanks to 2.5 million dollar loan from the Metropolitan Caucus' EnergyWorks program, developers can afford to move forward with the $14.7 million dollar project to convert the sites of the former Keasbey & Mattison Boiler House and two adjacent properties into state-of-the-art, eco-friendly multi-purpose properties.
Montgomery County Commissioners Chairman James R. Murphy said in a statement: "Redevelopment of the Ambler Boiler House will convert this blighted and environmentally challenged property into a vibrant part of the local economy and spur others to invest in Ambler."
The development team heading the conversion of the former asbestos factory have kept the familiar facade and removed asbestos and other hazards. Their focus on green redevelopment is admirable:
Earlier this year, [Summit Realty Advisors] removed all asbestos contamination, including portions of the roof and a 20,000-gallon fuel tank buried under the building.The new space, which will maintain the structure's distinctive redbrick facade and smokestack, is expected to seek certification from the Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design [LEED] program, which offers an internationally recognized set of criteria recognizing eco-friendly construction.Developers plan to install a geothermal well for heating and cooling, photovoltaic panels on the roof, and a system to capture storm-water runoff.
The Ambler Boiler House has come a long way since the 1960s:
For those of you too young to remember, these are some of the asbestos products formerly manufactured at the Ambler Boiler House:
We have already lived through the economic affects of factory closings, and we have been living with their absence for decades. A whole generation exists that never saw what Philadelphia was like when there were enough jobs to go around. But what they have seen are the closed factories full of asbestos and other hazmats.
The young people do not face asbestos exposure in the factory as their parents and grandparents did, but they do face it if they wander too close to forbidden zones. Telling a kid to keep out of a place is one surefire way to pique their curiosity, and "Keep Out" signs don't ensure community safety the way asbestos abatement and, even better, decontamination and redevelopment of contaminated sites does.
Of course, 14.7 million is something most communities can't just pull out of a hat. It took nine years for the developers to get the necessary funds.
I'd be interested to hear from former employees of the Ambler Boiler House--what was it like then? How many people, if any, have developed mesothelioma and asbestosis? Do you expect good results from the redevelopment? Ambler residents: have previous redevelopment projects like the one on Butler been successful, in your opinion?
For my part, I'm cautiously hopeful that green business initiatives like this will bring back some of the industry of the past without its industrial diseases.
