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Public Meetings Scheduled for Raymark Superfund Site in Stratford, Conn.

Release Date: 07/18/2007
Contact Information: Jim Murphy, (617) 918-1028

(Boston, Mass. - July 18, 2007) – Residents of Stratford, Conn. will have three opportunities during July and August to meet with EPA officials regarding ongoing work at the Raymark Superfund Site. EPA staff familiar with the work will discuss potential waste consolidation locations in Stratford and update residents on the status of the overall project.

EPA has identified three potential consolidation locations and each neighborhood session, scheduled from 6:30 to 8:30 p.m., will focus on the location closest to the particular neighborhood:

- Wednesday, July 25 at the Raymond Baldwin Center, 1000 Broad Street, will focus on the Raybestos Memorial Ballfield bounded by Frog Pond Lane, Patterson and Clinton avenues.

- Tuesday, August 7 at St. Joseph's Church, 1300 Stratford Road, will focus on the Stratford Landfill / Short Beach Park potential consolidation location in the Lordship neighborhood.

- Wednesday, August 8 at the Raymond Baldwin Center, 1000 Broad Street, will focus on the Ferry Creek potential consolidation location bounded by Ferry Blvd., Housatonic and Willow avenues.

The three neighborhood availability sessions will have an informal and interactive format to allow residents to speak with EPA and Conn. Dept. of Environmental Protection (CT DEP) staff on a one-on-one basis. The sessions will also provide EPA, CT DEP, and the Raymark Advisory Committee an opportunity to get early feedback from community residents before EPA prepares a proposed cleanup plan later this year in consultation with the state, the Raymark Advisory Committee, town officials and other interested citizens. EPA will ensure additional general public involvement by making the proposed cleanup plan available for a 30-day public review when the proposal is issued later this year.

Since June 2000, EPA and CTDEP have met regularly with the Raymark Advisory Committee, a local advisory group organized by the Stratford Town Council. This committee is a forum for on-going dialog with members of the Stratford community, town officials, EPA, CTDEP and other concerned parties interested in developing solutions for the Raymark cleanup. The Raymark Advisory Committee generally meets monthly on the second Tuesday at 6:30 p.m. The public is invited. Please call the Stratford Health Department at (203) 385-4090 to confirm the date, place and time of the next meeting.

Raymark was a manufacturer of automotive brakes, clutch parts, and other friction components, primarily for the automotive industry. Raymark and its predecessors operated at a 34-acre parcel at 75 East Main Street in Stratford from 1919 until 1989 when operations ceased. Raymark's manufacturing waste was historically disposed of as fill at 75 East Main Street, at a minimum of 46 residential properties, and at numerous commercial and municipal properties in Stratford.

More information: Cleanup work at the Raymark site ( epa.gov/region1/superfund/sites/raymark )

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