Erie County Redevelopment Authority and port hope to condemn Erie Coke, launch cleanup

In less than 2½ years, the Erie County Redevelopment Authority purchased the former Erie Malleable Iron Co. complex, tore down some of the buildings and completed an extensive environmental cleanup.

The Erie Coke facility, which closed in 2019, will not so quickly be brought back from the brink.

But the Redevelopment Authority and the Erie-Western Pennsylvania Port Authority have a plan to acquire the property at the foot of East Avenue with the goal of cleaning up the site that's been used for industrial manufacturing since 1833 and as a coke production facility since 1925.

The Port Authority and the Redevelopment Authority have scheduled a special joint meeting Friday morning to enter into an agreement "to investigate the potential acquisition and environmental clean-up of the Erie Coke Corporation property."

Erie Coke, which was closed in 2019 because of chronic environmental issues, left behind decades worth of pollution that pose a threat to Lake Erie, according to a report released in July 2022 that was prepared for the state Department of Environmental Protection.

According to the report, "The impact to shoreline sediments is likely a function of contaminant leaching from the decades of disposing of various process waste on and over the bluff above the shoreline."

The report continues "Waters from site operations were insufficiently processed prior to discharge into Lake Erie."

The acquisition plan

The plan is to acquire, not purchase, the 182-acre property, about 100 acres of which is above water.

According to a series of talking points provided by the two organizations, "Condemnation is likely to be the least expensive and most expeditious means of proceeding, which is in the best interest of the Erie community."

The process would begin by the Port Authority issuing a declaration of "legal taking." If there is no challenge to that declaration, the Port Authority would automatically become the owner of the property.

Not only is the Port Authority a next-door neighbor to Erie Coke, with property on both the east and west sides of the facility, but this also wouldn't be the first time the Port Authority had condemned Erie Coke property. In 1998, the Port Authority condemned more than 4 acres of Erie Coke property to provide space for expansion of port activities.

Leaders of the two authorities believe they have a good chance of acquiring the property.

According to briefing documents provided by the two authorities, "The legal basis for challenging a condemnation under these circumstances is very limited and, absent a successful legal challenge, the Port Authority would obtain title to the Site relatively quickly after condemnation proceedings are filed. It is believed that Erie Coke is unlikely to challenge the condemnation, given its abandonment of the Site."

The property's future

Securing title to the land could happen quickly, but preparing the site for a new use could take a long time.

The main goal is cleaning up the property, said Tina Mengine, CEO of the Redevelopment Authority.

"The reuse is secondary," she said.

"The site is in need of remediation so this is how we are approaching it," she said. "There are no immediate plans for its use, but we are talking about years and years, decades in cleanup and tens of millions of dollars."

Jeff Brinling, a senior vice president at Erie Insurance who serves as chairman of the Port Authority, agrees.

"This is a project that is going to be measured in decades, not years or months." he said. "We have been looking at the Erie Coke property for quite a while. ... It's been part of our master plan since 2018. Quite frankly, we have watched over the last four years as the property sat without being addressed."

While the Port Authority would take the lead in the condemnation process, the Redevelopment Authority has expertise in environmental cleanup and has the ability to secure funding to complete that work.

Who's to blame?

Both Brinling and Mengine said that taking ownership of the property does not mean the authorities are liable for the entire cost of clean-up and the environmental law violations of Erie Coke.

Both the state Department of Environmental Protection and the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency routinely provide written assurances — often known as comfort letters — that absolve new owners of past violations.

Mengine said a change in ownership would not absolve Erie Coke of legal and financial responsibility for cleaning up the property.

But that change does address an important reality, Mengine said.

According to the briefing from the two authorities, "Erie Coke appears to be completely insolvent, so our community must face reality and begin to reckon with the strong likelihood that there may simply be no way to recover substantial monies (if any money at all) from Erie Coke at this point in time."

There is a long list of reasons why the work is important, Mengine said.

"I mean, it's on the waterfront, it's near a campground, near a marina. It's near homes, it's near the Barber Center," Mengine said. "It's an important piece of property. It's nearly 100 acres in an area that absolutely needs immediate attention."

Forming a partnership to address the problem makes sense, she said.

"I think working together is the fastest way to address the concerns and get this done," Mengine said.

The two authorities will meet Friday at 8:30 a.m. at the Port Authority offices at 1 Holland St.

More: Danger zones: asbestos, toxic chemicals among hazards left at Erie's Quin-T, EMI sites

Contact Jim Martin at jmartin@timesnews.com.

This article originally appeared on Erie Times-News: Cleaning up Erie Coke will cost millions and will take decades