Wilcox Forging site in Mechanicsburg could become business incubator
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Article RatingThe former Wilcox Forging Co. site in Mechanicsburg could be the future location of a business incubator center.
John Gross & Co., Inc. could submit a land development plan to the borough planning commission within two months, said Brian Gross, president of the wholesale grocer, which now owns the 5.8-acre foundry site on East Allen Street.
He said the plan is to construct a 20,000-square-foot building that could be divided into sections and leased to start-up businesses trying to get established.
Gross said the last remnant of Wilcox Forging — a 22.5 ton hammer mill — could be removed from the site within the next week and shipped to a manufacturing plant in Hatfield.
A salvage crew will build an overhead system of pulleys to hoist the heavy piece of equipment five feet off the ground before workers dismantle and load its parts onto a flatbed truck, Gross said.
Wilcox Forging operated for 111 years before the company ceased operations in 2001. Ronald Anderson took over ownership of the property and was removing debris and selling off heavy equipment from the site.
Investigators suspect acetylene torches touched off the fire in October 2003 that destroyed the forge at 320 E. Allen St.
Firefighters from 10 West Shore companies battled the fire for nearly 12 hours but were hindered in part because heavy wooden floor beams had been saturated over the years by oil spilled from machinery during the forge’s history of operation.
By 2003, most of the machinery had been removed and, on the day of the fire, a demolition crew was using acetylene torches to dismantle sections of the metal roof and trusses of the abandoned center building.
In May 2004, American Legion Post 109 in Mechanicsburg announced plans to buy the Wilcox Forging site and build a new $2.75 million legion hall to include a ballroom, canteen, a game room and offices.
But, in a phone interview this week, Gross said the American Legion project had since fallen through and the veterans group sold the property to John Gross & Co. in October.
Now in its fourth generation, the wholesale grocer may also use the Wilcox Forging land for a future expansion, Gross said.
