Buildings will be up or underway at two of three former factory sites

Carlisle Borough will spend much of 2018 completing the final design and permitting work leading up to major street improvement projects tied to this redevelopment.

IAC/Masland

Carlisle Events purchased the former IAC/Masland site in 2010 shortly after the factory on Carlisle Springs Road closed. A fire in 2012 caused severe damage and prompted five years of demolition, environmental remediation, engineering and finance work, which culminated last November with an official groundbreaking of the mixed-use development plan.

Work has begun to install erosion and sedimentation controls on the site, said Mark Malarich, borough public works director. He said the installation of underground utilities — storm water drainage and water and sewer lines — will start in early 2018.

“People will finally start to see a difference in the landscape in the next two years for sure,” said Michael Garland, public relations manager for Carlisle Events. “It’s a long time coming, but we’re excited to have made it this far.”

Carlisle Events management is continuing to work with developers Mark and Allan Galbraith to bring “car condos” to the site. These three-story units will have ground floor garages able to hold four to six vehicles, with the intention of being marketed as second homes for die-hard car collectors who attend Carlisle Events’ shows and auctions.

The current timeline is to break ground on this housing in the third quarter of 2018, Garland said. He said the expectation is to start construction of a hotel in the second quarter. Simraj Hospitality Management, a hotel group that operates several Midstate hotel franchises, will manage the Hilton Hotel planned for the site.

Carlisle Events also has commitments from Tri-Corner Communities to build out several residential parcels as well as an agreement with Aldredo Iannuzzi, owner of Marcello’s Ristorante, to develop a 6,000-square-foot restaurant at the corner of Carlisle Springs Road and an A Street extension at the IAC/Masland site.

The approved land development plan for this brownfield calls for the extension of A, B, C and D streets from Fairground Avenue to Carlisle Springs Road. The street extensions will be completed in 2018, Garland said.

Carlisle Tire & Wheel

The first buildings of the Carlisle Urban Redevelopment Plan started to go up on this brownfield in late 2017. The schedule is for those units to be completed by fall 2018.

Cleveland-based developer PIRHL secured an agreement to purchase the former Carlisle Tire & Wheel site in fall 2015. Since then, the developer has partnered with the Cumberland County Housing and Redevelopment Authorities on a plan to build 40 townhouses, 12 flat apartments, a two-acre park and a 2,000-square-foot community building on a portion of this brownfield. The plan is to also extend B and C streets through the property and to address storm water drainage issues.

In October 2017, borough council narrowly approved a letter of support for a proposed Phase II for this site to include 42 rental units including 11 one-bedroom, 20 two-bedroom and 11 three-bedroom units.

Tyco Electronics

Of the three former industrial sites, the one for Tyco Electronics is among the most challenging to develop because it carries significant upfront costs associated with demolition, storm water management, infrastructure and site preparation, said Jonathan Bowser, chief executive officer of the Cumberland Area Economic Development Corp., during an interview in September with The Sentinel.

Real Estate Collaborative, a subsidiary of CAEDC, has control of not only the Tyco site, but two adjacent lots with frontage on North Hanover Street. Cost figures in September have the Tyco site costing at least $2.5 million to develop with about $1.4 million of that related to demolition and remediation costs. At the time, Bowser anticipated building 43,000 square feet of retail space and 30,000 square feet of office space.

“The borough has not received any concrete plans for that redevelopment site,” Malarich said in late December. “It has not progressed. I don’t expect to see anything next year.”

Street improvements

Construction work on improvements tied to the Carlisle Connectivity and Urban Redevelopment plans will probably not occur until 2019, Borough Manager Matt Candland said.

“The borough has several projects that are still in the design phase,” Malarich said. Those projects include three roundabouts: one at B and College streets, one at B Street and Fairground Avenue and one at North Hanover and Penn Streets.

The work also includes modifications to Fairground Avenue. The borough intends to have a meeting in early April to review the project schedule with the public, Malarich said.