February 25, 1995

The Front Royal-Warren County Economic Development Authority is seeking $200,000 in federal funding to help turn the former Avtex Fibers site from a wasteland into a bustling business park, the authorities executive director said Friday.

Although the current volunteer-led effort to rehabilitate the former rayon plant is "fabulous," volunteers cannot handle the amount of work required to turn the factory into marketable industrial space, Stephen A. Heavener said.

The authority has applied to the Environmental Protection Agency for inclusion in a pilot redevelopment program that would provide $100,000 a year for two years. At the end of the project period, 100,000 or more square feet of manufacturing and warehousing space would be prepared for industrial lease, Heavener said.

That space is crucial for attracting businesses to the county because many companies want to move into existing buildings, he has said.

The money provided by the Brownfields Economic Redevelopment Initiative would pay for a project manager and related costs such as office furniture, computer hardware and software, printing and advertising, Heavener said.

"I think our chances are good. I certainly think we have a project that’s worthy of support," he said.

Federal officials may support the application because Avtex used to support federal operations, Heavener said. Avtex's predecessor, American Viscose, was run by the War Production Board.

The county needs to spend more time and energy on the site because it's a "tremendous resource," Heavener said.

"There's more buildings and land available at Avtex than all the other deals I'm working on," he said.

The project manager would keep in constant contact with the EPA; FMC Corp.,which owned the plant for 13 years; and the Avtex bankruptcy trustee and would work on development and marketing, Heavener said. The size and complexity of negotiations require one person's full attention, he said.

According to the EPA application, the pilot program is aimed at helping communities revitalize contaminated or potentially contaminated properties, or "brownfields," rather than develop unspoiled "greenfields."

The Avtex Fibers property contains about 400 acres and 2.8 million square feet of buildings, some of which Heavener proposes to demolish.

The plant became an EPA Superfund cleanup site after it closed in 1989 because of pollution violations.

The Avtex site is "having a devastating effect on the developability and morale of Warren County," the application for funds says. "Although this is the only substantive brownfield in Warren County, its sheer physical size and scope creates an environment that affects all aspects of the community."

Heavener said he doesn't know when he'll get a decision on the application, but hopes the project can begin July 1 if funding is provided.