READING, Pa. – Twenty-three years after the former Dana Corporation closed its plant in northwest Reading, new life may be on the horizon for the one-time manufacturing site.
Reading City Council voted unanimously to authorize the sale of the 50-acre site at 1 Berkshire Place.
The property had seen some interested potential buyers over the years, but none ever came to fruition.
The city purchased the property along the Schuylkill River for $1.54 million from the Reading Redevelopment Authority in 2019.
On Monday night, council authorized the sale of the 50-acre site to NewCold USA Real Estate Holding LLC for $4.5 million.
While the sale is through a holding company, NewCold is a European-based company that plans to locate one of its automated warehouse and cold-chain logistics companies at the site.
However, it has one year to clear the hurdles of zoning and planning commission approvals.
William Heim, city manager, said the sale has been under discussion for some time.
“It’s now coming to fruition where we do have an agreement of sale with this particular company,” Heim said. “There will be a period of due diligence. But this will begin the sale of the property which we are all waiting on.”
Mayor Eddie Moran said the sale would not have been possible without the River Road extension, which is now nearing completion.
“I think this will be a very good thing, and hopefully, we will be seeing that site developed in the relatively near future,” Moran said. “This goes with the city’s vision to continue to improve and create opportunities — employment opportunities — and the usage of our lands that are not being used currently.”
Pastor Evelyn Morrison, a frequent commentor, said she had concerns about the land being sold.
“Does the buyer know that this is a brownfield, that it is 50 acres of contaminated land?” Morrison asked. “These are serious contaminants that are in the ground, and the air, soil and water is going to affect the surrounding area. We need a toxic trespass ordinance.”