Chemours entered into an agreement with The Claremont Companies LLC (Claremont), an experienced developer, to purchase the entire 348-acre Oakley site, with the exception of 22 acres at the southwest corner of the site, currently under option with Contra Costa Generating Station LLC (CCGS).
This agreement is a major milestone in Chemours’ efforts to return the property to productive reuse in the Oakley community.
Claremont, a large regional real estate company who has developed multiple properties in the area, will create a 21st century industrial park on the site. Additional due diligence and work toward preparing the property will occur prior to property transfer.
This progress towards site redevelopment follows the June 2016 announcement of Chemours signing a three year lease extension with CCGS on a 22-acre portion of the site for the development of a 624 megawatt natural gas power generation plant.
Oakley City Manager Bryan Montgomery confirmed the news saying the purchase had been “brewing” in the background for some time now and it is great news for Oakley that the land has been sold.
“It is a huge step to having it developed and bringing more jobs to Oakley. Kevin (Romick) has been the main contact with these folks over the last few years and they first contacted him to let him know that the deal had been signed,” said Montgomery. “They posted that brief note on the Big Break Oakley website because they had received a lot of questions.”
According to Oakley Mayor Kevin Romick, he posted on social media the following:
Potential Site Uses – A preliminary reuse assessment identified numerous market drivers within the East Bay region and specifically in the northeastern section of Contra Costa County. The following are examples of industries that may benefit from locating on the property:
- Remanufacturing disassembly, reassembly
- Light industrial and assembly
- Green industry manufacturing and research
- Data centers and back office operations
- Emerging technologies research, prototype and production
- Intermodal transport and distribution
- Warehouse and rail-based yard storage
- Marine-related industries
No official press release has been put out yet.
According to the website, the industrial history of this property dates back to 1955 when DuPont purchased land along Bridgehead Road and broke ground on a manufacturing facility. The manufacturing plant was operated on the site from 1956 to 1998 when production activities ceased and the buildings dismantled. At the height operations, this facility employed nearly 600 people and was an economic driver for the local community and region.
Originally built to make a gasoline “anti-knock” agent, DuPont soon added the manufacture of refrigeration cooling compounds. In 1963, DuPont expanded again to include the production of titanium dioxide, a white pigment used in a variety of household products and foods.
Today, DuPont is working toward the phased release of the property for redevelopment with the intent of returning the site to productive use that will benefit Oakley and the larger region. For more information on the history of the property and the remediation work underway, visit www.oakley.dupont.com.
Source: http://bigbreakoakley.com/news/
