New Kensignton seals Schreiber deal, already has interest from business

New Kensington's Redevelopment Authority is the proud owner of the Schreiber Industrial Park.

Stretching for more than a mile along the Allegheny River through the city and neighboring Arnold, the industrial property once home to Alcoa's Pittsburgh Works was sold to the city Thursday night by the Schreiber Industrial Development Co. for $8 million.

That hefty price tag comes with more than 70 acres and includes more than 1.25 million square feet of space for business, according to the authority. Of that square footage, about half is occupied by 16 different tenants.

“This is a new day for the city of New Kensington,” Mayor Tom Guzzo said Friday. “We are really excited about this. We are taking the initiative to move forward for our city and our residents.”

According to Guzzo, the park's future will focus on advanced manufacturing, a plan, he says, that ultimately will bring jobs to the city that haven't been available since Alcoa closed up shop there in 1970.

“We're going to partner with Penn State University and Westmoreland County Community College so that they will provide the training to match those advanced manufacturing jobs so that the people from this community and from our Alle-Kiski area will be able to profit from having that training and having those types of jobs,” Guzzo said.

The first steps, according to officials, include determining exactly what needs to be done to each of the 18 buildings on the property to make them ready for the future the city has in mind. Infrastructure that needs to be replaced will be paid for using the remaining funds from a $4 million grant and $8 million loan given to the city by the state Department of Community and Economic Development's Business in Our Sites program.

Despite the city owning the property for less than a day, Guzzo said they already have spoken to a potential tenant.

“Shortly after the closing yesterday, there was a company that spoke to us immediately,” he said. “They are a company that will initially bring about 60 jobs to Schreiber.”

The purchase comes just as the city is working to improve its own infrastructure and develop a so-called “smart city” through other state grant programs. According to the state, the purchase of Schreiber will bring in about 400 jobs to start, but the city has bigger plans.

“There are all kinds of ideas swirling through our heads right now,” Guzzo said. “It's all about jobs.”

John Ward, the Redevelopment Authority's Solicitor, said the city will continue to work with the current tenants of the property to make sure the park is working for them while also aiming to make it more attractive to new businesses.

“We will be involved in a very active marketing roll to try to bring other companies into the city,” Ward said. “Like anything else, you have to be prepared to be in a position to provide what a potential tenant wants. We believe this new energy, being driven by the mayor and the city, will attract more attention.”

Matthew Medsger is a Tribune-Review staff writer. Reach him at 724-226-4675, mmedsger@tribweb.com or via Twitter @matthew_medsger.