Renaissance Commerce Park sparking a Lackawanna development wave

A decade in the making, Renaissance Commerce Park is emerging as a redevelopment success story along former Bethlehem Steel Corp. land on Route 5 in Hamburg.

The 240-acre property, being developed by the Erie County Industrial Development Agency and City of Lackawanna, is home to a mix of private sector developments with hundreds of jobs and more to come. But getting there took a lot of time — and work.

Shortly after taking office in 2012, Erie County Executive Mark Poloncarz targeted the property as a likely commercial development site.

"That was the plan; that was the goal," said Poloncarz, a Lackawanna native and son of a Bethlehem Steel worker. "To me, it was prime real estate along the (Hamburg) turnpike that was just sitting there."

The land had been largely untouched since Bethlehem Steel began its shutdown in 1982. A number of development ideas were floated over the years, but none ever left the initial planning stage.

Turning the former steel making property into a shovel-ready development site required remediation. Roads, sewer and water lines were installed; an aging security fence was removed and a portion of a rail line that cut through the property was relocated. That took $5 million from the county and six years.

The land — about 20% of the 1,200-acre Bethlehem Steel property in Lackawanna and Hamburg — also had to be acquired from former owner Tecumseh Redevelopment Inc. of Richfield, Ohio.

Here's a look at where the commerce park and adjacent sites stand today.

Employees: 100

It all began with Canadian steelmaker Welded Tube LLC, which built a $50 million, 110,000-square-foot plant on a parcel that borders the western edge of Renaissance Commerce Park. That was in 2013, just as the initial remediation work was getting underway. Technically, Welded Tube is not within the Renaissance park footprint but the project did create spark other development.

Employees: 21

In 2020, Coral Gables, Fla.-based sugar manufacturer Sucro Sourcing LLC began operations just north of the Welded Tube site. The company, which has a raw processing operation for liquid sugar on site, plans is adding $21 million refinery. The plant is also just beyond the Renaissance park footprint in the Port of Buffalo complex.

Employees: 160

Around the same time, Buffalo's TMP Technologies announced plans to develop a $30 million, 230,000-square-foot plant along the Dona Street extension. TMP was the first private-sector project within the Renaissance Commerce Park footprint. The plant, where such products as Mr. Clean Magic Erasers are made, opened in mid-2022.

"Those three projects alone gave people a lot of confidence," said John Cappellino, ECIDA president and CEO. "It started with Welded Tube, but TMP was that one leap of faith project that is sparking a lot of others interest in Renaissance."

Employees: 45

In 2021, Uniland Development Co. was named designated developer for a parcel at the northwest corner of Dona Street and Route 5. The Amherst-based company spent $20 million to develop a 151,000-square-foot warehouse at 8 Dona St. that opened in early 2023.

The warehouse's anchor tenant, Total Quality Assurance International, initially agreed to lease 81,000 square feet but later expanded that to 108,000 square feet. Total Quality employs 45 people and has plans to hire another 15.

Uniland is now building a second warehouse along Dona Street, which has been rebranded Steelworker's Way. The $20 million project is expected to be completed late this year.

"We have seen firsthand the strong demand for manufacturing/warehouse space at 8 Dona St. and that has given us confidence to proceed with the second warehouse," said Ryan Weisz, Uniland senior marketing manager.

Ciminelli Real Estate Corp. is also working on plans for a mixed-use building within Renaissance Commerce Park. Work may begin later this year on the 250,000-square-feet building.

The project, which could include manufacturing or distribution space, is just across Dona Street from where Uniland Development Co. is building.

"Taken together, these are all great lifts," Lackawanna Mayor Annette Iafallo said. "In a way, it is kind of mind blowing. We are taking what is happening in Renaissance and using it to create development leverage."

Employees: 300

The Port of Buffalo complex at 1951 Fuhrmann Blvd. is not within the Renaissance footprint, but it neighbors the property.

The site, operated by New Enterprise, Pa.-based New Enterprise Stone & Lime Co. Inc. under its Gateway Metroport affiliate, has also seen an uptick in new tenants.

"There is a lot of synergy between RCP and the Port of Buffalo," said Lisa Eberz, CBRE/Buffalo industrial real estate specialist. "The two absolutely go hand-in-hand."

The draw, Eberz said, is the complex's 3,000-foot pier and 4,000-feet of active rail siding.

New Enterprise lists 14 tenants on site: Castaloop USA, CDI Investigations, Compass Minerals, Cryptalo Ltd., Engineered Mix, Ferrous Manufacturing Inc., Linta Design and Manufacturing Corp., NESL Redi-Mix, Powers Coke & Coal, Rybo Marine, Southside Precast, Sucro Sourcing, the U.S.Army Corps of Engineers and WS Services LLC.

Those companies employ more than 300 people, according to public record filings with Lackawanna and Erie County.

• Flexlume Signs Co. is building a 20,000-square-foot headquarters, manufacturing and distribution hub on a vacant parcel at 1 Albright Court. The sign maker will shift its headquarters to Lackawanna from Buffalo. Albright Court is just across Route 5 from Renaissance Commerce Park.

• Developer Douglas Jemal has proposed a $35 million, 200,000-square-foot building at 539 Ridge Road that will be anchored by 160 market-rate apartments.

"Developers are coming to us now," said Lauren Jednek, Lackawanna director of development. "We’re back on the development map. Renaissance has really raised our profile in the development community."