TONAWANDA, N.Y. (WKBW) — The site of the former Tonwanda Coke plant now has a new owner.
Riverview Innovation & Technology Campus, Inc. officially completed its purchase of the site on Thursday. The company was the only one to submit a bid for the 140-acre site within the bankruptcy auction.
Tonwanda Coke was shut down last summer because of concerns over the emissions coming from the plant. The D.E.C. believed it was potentially harming workers, the surrounding community, and the environment.
The team at Riverview Innovation is already on site with the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation and the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency to continue the clean-up.
“Our team knows the challenges of cleaning up and addressing environmental challenges created by our region’s industrial history,” said Jon M. Williams, Riverview Innovation & Technology Campus, Inc. owner. “We are ready to start the hard work of turning the page on what was to what can be at the site."
Williams has worked on other clean-up and redevelopment efforts in Western New York. He worked with Honeywell on the remediation of the former Buffalo Color site in South Buffalo that is now home to the Medaille Sports Complex.
Long-term, Williams sees this new campus as an ideal location for a data tech hub.
