Ohio EPA Director Anne M. Vogel announced the agency will clear the site of the former Crest Rubber Company, the first step in revitalizing a dangerous eyesore in the community.
“Making Ohio communities safer is a top priority for Governor DeWine,” Dir. Vogel said. “The Ohio EPA has the expertise and resources to help local municipalities clean up dangerous illegal dumping sites around the state, and it is exciting to see Ravenna return this long-neglected property into a valuable asset for the community.”
Operations at the manufacturing facility ceased in 2015 and the property was vacated, eventually becoming a nuisance to the community. Recognizing the need for action, the city of Ravenna obtained consent from the Portage County Common Pleas Court in 2022 to condemn and demolish the deteriorating buildings, as no responsible owner could be found to address the site’s conditions. While progress has been made, some debris, including materials containing asbestos, remained on-site.
Ohio EPA will have contractors safely remove an estimated 6,600 tons of construction and demolition debris from the two-acre site, including a section of nonfriable asbestos-containing floor adhesive. Following Ohio’s environmental regulations, the materials will be safely removed and disposed of at Minerva Enterprises landfill in Waynesburg.
“Smaller communities are vital to regional and state economic growth,” Ravenna Mayor Frank Seman said. “However, it becomes challenging for a small community to compete against the larger metropolitan areas not only for business attraction and expansion, but also viable funding mechanisms. The Ohio Environmental Protection Agency became that hope for this small Portage County community, providing the resources necessary to clean this blighted property.”
The project is a collaborative effort between Ohio EPA, the city of Ravenna, and the Akron Regional Air Quality Management District. Ohio EPA is committing $1.1 million from its Environmental Protection Remediation Fund for the cleanup.
The cleanup is estimated to take 60 days.
Published January 2025