Contaminated foundry site in Adams County nets grant, loans to be rehabilitated

After decades of decay, the contaminated site of a former foundry in Adams County will soon be rehabilitated, thanks to grants and loans from the state.

The Adams County Industrial Development Authority (ACIDA) announced that they have been awarded a $1.4 million dollar loan and a $956,666 grant as part of the Business in Our Sites program from the state to fund redeveloping the former Gettysburg Foundry site in Freedom Township.

The blighted 48-acre site was left uninhabitable after the foundry closed in the 1990s when it was discovered that hazardous waste was improperly discarded on the property, the ACIDA said in a release.

The site holds contaminated groundwater and soil, and is overgrown with several blighted buildings, the release said.

The ACIDA took ownership of the contaminated site in 2022 as it sought to remediate the location to the Department of Environmental Protection standards.

Now, thanks to the money provided by the Business in Our Sites program, crews will perform remediation, demolition of remaining structures, site boundary surveying, site clearing and grading, and installation of necessary utilities, the release said.

When the project is complete, the 48-acres will be returned to "productive economic use," the release states.

The foundry was once home to aluminum casting and smelting operations.

The Business In Our Sites Program is a highly-competitive state program that awards approximately $48 million statewide to 10 projects each year, the ACIDA said.

This article originally appeared on Hanover Evening Sun: Contaminated foundry site in Adams County nets grant, loans to be rehabilitated