The 24-acre Jaite Paper Mill site is located on a natural floodplain at the confluence of the Cuyahoga River and Brandywine Creek at Brecksville, Ohio. The Mill Site is immediately adjacent to the popular Ohio and Erie Canal Towpath Trail. Originally constructed in 1905, the Mill was operated continuously until 1984, by which time the size of the plant had grown to 180,000 square feet. In 1985, the Mill became part of the Cuyahoga Valley National Park. Fire in October 1992 severely damaged a large part of the plant. After this fire, the plant began deteriorating rapidly and became increasingly dangerous to park staff and visitors. The demolition and removal of the Mill was intended to eliminate a human health and safety hazard and [...]
Summary
The 24-acre Jaite Paper Mill site is located on a natural floodplain at the confluence of the Cuyahoga River and Brandywine Creek at Brecksville, Ohio. The Mill Site is immediately adjacent to the popular Ohio and Erie Canal Towpath Trail. Originally constructed in 1905, the Mill was operated continuously until 1984, by which time the size of the plant had grown to 180,000 square feet. In 1985, the Mill became part of the Cuyahoga Valley National Park. Fire in October 1992 severely damaged a large part of the plant. After this fire, the plant began deteriorating rapidly and became increasingly dangerous to park staff and visitors. The demolition and removal of the Mill was intended to eliminate a human health and safety hazard and to restore the site back to a natural, visitor-friendly area.
The project involved demolishing and removing all above-ground materials, including concrete, metal, wood, and glass. Mitigation work was needed for lead paint and asbestos-containing materials, including the active control of fugitive dust during demolition activities. Certain historical features were preserved so that the park can interpret the site for visitors in the future. These features include some railroad posts and an essential part of the paper-making process, a “fourdrinier” which dried the paper.
Economic Impacts of Restoration. The project was implemented by NPS with nearly all of the planning, engineering, and construction tasks contracted to an environmental engineering firm and local construction subcontractor. Planning for the project took approximately 2.5 years to complete with expenditures totaling $600,000 ($2011). Planning activities supported a total of 4 jobs per year and over $535,000 ($214,000 per year) in local labor income (salaries, wages, and benefits).
The actual demolition and removal fieldwork occurred during the spring of 2006 and took approximately three months to complete. Expenditures for the demolition phase totaled $1.3 million ($2011). The demolition directly supplied jobs for approximately 27 construction workers for the three-month duration and supplied over $380,000 in labor income to the local economy. Salary spending and equipment purchases for the demolition project increased demand for products and services from local vendors and are estimated to have supported an additional 9 jobs and $375,000 in labor income within the local economy during 2006.