June 20, 2011 – The $14.7 million project to convert the former site of the Ambler Boiler House asbestos factory into energy-efficient office space is now fully funded with a $2.5 million loan from the Metropolitan Caucus’ EnergyWorks program. The EnergyWorks program grants loans, rebates, and tax credits to homeowners and developers to promote energy efficiency.
The Boiler House site is located close to Ambler’s revived Butler Avenue district and a SEPTA rail line. It operated for nearly a century as an asbestos-manufacturing plant until the 1980s. Since then, it has sat vacant because of the cost of clean-up.
Nine years ago, Summit Realty Advisors of New Castle, Del., purchased the site. The company began amassing funding for the cleanup, including private funding and nearly $11 million in grants and loans from various government entities. Earlier this year, the company removed all asbestos contamination, including portions of the roof and a 20,000-gallon fuel tank buried under the building. The project is expected to be completed by next summer.