Business to reopen after Clarke fire
Interface Dynamics to restart work while ATP looks for new home
BETHEL — One business is getting back on its feet, while another is still in limbo after Sunday’s massive fire at Clarke Business Park.
Intersurface Dynamics expects to restart production on Wednesday, while ATP, a company that manufactures adhesive tape, continues to look for a new space after a blaze that more than 100 firefighters battled for about eight hours Sunday.
The front of the Francis J. Clarke Circle building, where ATP was located, was gutted, but the back, which is home to Intersurface Dynamics, was protected by a firewall and suffered only water and smoke damage.
“We’re up and going,” said Jon Wolk, one of the owners of both the building and business, as crews from Servpro cleaned Intersurface Dynamics’ space on Tuesday afternoon.
Meanwhile, workers from ATP pulled files from inside the building Tuesday. The owner of the company said Monday he was “devastated” by the fire, but planned to continue to pay his employees.
The town’s economic development director is researching spaces where
ATP could reopen.
“That’s their biggest priority right now,” said Janice Chrzescijanek, director of economic development. “But as other things come up, we’re going to help them with whatever they need.”
Inspectors from the state Department of Energy and Environmental Protection were at the site Tuesday to monitor disposal of any chemicals on the property.
The department still needs to identify those chemicals, but they are expected to be standard chemicals found in a printing business, such as ink, dyes or adhesives, said Mark Liano, an emergency response coordinator with DEEP.
Any toxic or hazardous materials would have been discovered during the fire, he said.
“We’re just dealing with regular industrial chemicals, nothing out of the ordinary,” Liano said.
The building was constructed in 1987, according to property records, making it likely one of the first buildings in the industrial park, Chrzescijanek said.
Intersurface Dynamics moved into the space in 1997, while ATP has been there for 16 years, the owners of the companies said.
Intersurface Dynamics makes high-tech detergents sold across the world, particularly in Asia, Wolk said. The company had existing stock that was not destroyed in the fire, so the business has not been too badly affected yet, he said.
“We’ve just got to get on things quickly,” he said.
Wolk said he plans to reconstruct the front of the building, but this will likely take time.
Businesses surrounding the property, including Base Technologies next door, were not affected by the blaze, said Mike Boyle, owner of Base Technologies and chair of the Economic Development Commission.
Nor will the fire affect the plans to expand Clarke Business Park down Trowbridge Drive, which is off Francis J. Clarke Circle, he said. This project has been in the works for several years to add businesses to the full park.
The town has applied for a state grant to cover half the cost to add the infrastructure, including the sewer line, on Trowbridge Drive for four new lots, he said. A state grant already covered half the cost to design the project.
Work is roughly estimated at $800,000 to $900,000, but the town will soon request bids from companies for the project, Boyle said. The new businesses are expected to bring in $132,000 a year in tax revenue to the town, officials have estimated.
“Business has been pretty good for most of the businesses here,” Boyle said. “We’re anxious to finish up the lots and continue to see this park grow and contribute to the tax base in town.”
The infrastructure would be added in the fall at the earliest, next spring at the latest, Chrzescijanek said. Companies would then construct their buildings.
One of the new lots would probably not be a good option for ATP, unless the company wanted to move into a temporary space before purchasing a permanent property in the park, Chrzescijanek said.
“The timing probably wouldn’t work out for them,” she said.