Owned by GenCorp Inc. since 1954, this 8.6-acre former industrial site thrived from the mid-1800s, with massive mills and manufacturing facilities. Today, through a unique public/private partnership initiated by GenCorp, this brownfields remediation project is a critical piece of a citywide redevelopment plan that will return this and other properties to beneficial use, including a much-heralded landscaped parking facility that is enthusiastically endorsed and crucial to a comprehensive redevelopment initiative.
Closed in the early 1980s, the site once supported 26 interconnected buildings—more than 600,000 square feet of space—and an extensive network of subsurface infrastructure that became contaminated from manufacturing processes. In 1985, CDM partnered with GenCorp and a committed group of public and private stakeholders—including the city of Lawrence and numerous state and local agencies and organizations—and was supported by the mayor and key members of Congress to map out a safe and efficient remediation and restoration program.
Addressing the site's complex issues has required a high level of organization, communication, and technological expertise, as well as a dedicated and talented team. The CDM team:
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Created carefully sequenced remediation approaches for the site's intricate infrastructure
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Modeled groundwater plumes through complicated glacial geology
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Designed a functional reuse landscape that blends with the surrounding environment
Since 1993, CDM has worked in concert with numerous onsite contractors and consultants to abate asbestos and demolish contaminated buildings, excavate material, and remove site drainage and utilities. Now, through a design-build engagement in which CDM continues to execute all day-to-day site activities, the way is being cleared to remove the remaining contaminated debris and soil—more than 60,000 tons over the course of the project—and construct an innovative groundwater remediation system that will reuse the site's historic subsurface hydropower raceways.