Poking around the brownfield clean-up site a stone’s throw from Sandy Hook Village Center and the banks of the Pootatuck reveals a deteriorating complex of buildings that once contributed to Newtown’s manufacturing heritage.

Economic and Community Development Deputy Director Christal Preszler and colleague Christine O’Neil unlocked the heavy gate to the grounds of 28A Glen Road for a brief tour with The Newtown Bee, August 30, as the town announced a new grant being applied to tackle the containment and remediation of some of the most imminently hazardous materials that had been abandoned on the site for decades.

With a little imagination, it is easy to envision the cluster of buildings, once the site of R.S. Watkins & Sons, as a thriving beehive of activity that employed hundreds of local residents over the years, including a young William Halstead, who went on to serve as a long-time fire marshal and still serves as Chief of Sandy Hook Fire & Rescue.

In fact, Halstead provided some key narrative to a voluminous environmental site assessment generated on the property by GeoDesign, Inc, of Middlebury back in 2014, Preszler said.

When it was fully utilized, the property included one private residence, three industrial buildings, and two storage sheds. The residential structure dates from 1847, while the other buildings sprang up between 1943 and 1947.

The site, when in use, was served by at least two private water supply wells located in a sub-basements of two of the buildings; a septic disposal system is also associated with each of these buildings.

Site History

According to that report, the site was residential until the Watkins family added industrial buildings and began metal machining operations on cast iron and steel in the early 1930s. From 1974 to 1990, R.S. Watkins & Sons added welding and brass wire drawing and annealing operations.

For a period of time, rabbits and other animals were also raised and housed in the complex.

Wire drawing operations required the use of acid baths to remove scale and lubricants during the drawing process. EnviroAudit’s report documented the presence of acids, caustics, oils, and large vats of “green solution.” The green solution may have been a wire drawing lubricant containing copper sulfate, which is a commonly used lubricant and rust preventative.

Newtown is leveraging $45,000 received from the Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA’s) Revolving Loan Fund and administered through Naugatuck Valley Council of Governments (NVCOG), to continue assessment and cleanup of the facility. It remains an important project for the town due to its proximity to the Pootatuck River, neighbors, and Sandy Hook Village.

When the town came into possession of the property in March of 2013 through tax foreclosure, it was in need of environmental remediation. A progress update provided to The Newtown Bee this week noted that town officials see great potential for the site once remediation and demolition are complete.

Work Progressing

Over the past seven years, two environmental site assessments and a hazardous building materials assessment have been performed there, also funded by the EPA and NVCOG.

This recent grant, however, is more action-oriented: specifically, it is to inventory and remove both hazardous and non-hazardous waste materials from the site. Previous reports identified volatile organic compounds, petroleum hydrocarbons, and metals on the premises.

With the $45,000 grant, and anticipated additional funds from the town, the Economic and Community Development Department along with NVCOG and the Town of Newtown Purchasing Agent solicited bids from licensed environmental professionals (LEPs) and state-qualified contractors.

The LEP selected was Tim Carr of Down to Earth Consulting, LLC, and the cleanup contractor selected was Environmental Services, Inc, of South Windsor. These professionals began inventorying the various materials to securely remove them from the site in compliance with necessary protocols. Work began on August 27, and is expected to continue for at least five business days.

“After spending time and money having this property assessed, it’s rewarding to see boots on the ground,” said Preszler. “We still have work to do after the materials are removed through this round of funding — but this is an important stride forward.”