MANSFIELD — Two boys and their father tossed a frisbee under a pink and blue sunset. A trio of girls ran in circles on the grass. Couples grabbed a beer and lawn chair, while friends challenged each other to a round of corn hole.
The convivial atmosphere captured a similar spirit of familiarity and togetherness that employees said they felt when Westinghouse was a multistory manufacturing hub.
Except now, the site of the former Westinghouse factory is a vacant 14-acre lot with an unwritten future.
“People are excited for the possibilities. They want to know what’s next,” said Angie Cirone, who manages the Richland Area Chamber’s Leadership Unlimited program.
This year’s Leadership Unlimited class cohosted a WestingHOUSE Party at the site Saturday with the Richland County Land Bank.
The event celebrated the site’s newfound viability after years of demolition, excavation and environmental studies.
“People are happy that there’s been progress,” said Cirone, standing next to a table stacked with WestingHOUSE Party t-shirts. “They’re happy to be here and to be in this together as a community.”
‘I hope they do something good with it’
Westinghouse operated on the city’s northeast side from 1918 to 1990. At its peak in the 1950s, it employed more than 8,000 people — about a third of the local workforce.
The massive factory operated for more than seven decades and closed for good in 1990.
It sat dormant and decaying for more than three decades before $4 million in state and local dollars paid to demolish and clean it up, an effort led by the Richland County Land Bank.
Saturday’s celebration included live music, bounce houses, food trucks and a small volleyball tournament. The evening concluded with a fireworks show.
The event paid tribute to the site’s manufacturing history with a display of the original Elektro, a robot built by Westinghouse employees for the 1939 World’s Fair.
Linda Smith was one of several attendees to get her picture taken with the robot.
The day was bittersweet for Smith, who reunited with former co-workers Linda Townsend and Barbara Hubbard at the event.
All three worked at Westinghouse in the 1970s and 1980s, putting in a combined 42 years at the company. The women worked in multiple departments over the years, in assembly and later in crating.
“I loved the people,” Hubbard said. “We always had so much fun.”
Townsend and Smith agreed, noting the company paid employees well — enough to support a family.
Townsend recalled her excitement at finding out her salary would be $5.64 an hour — two dollars more than her previous job — when she started with the appliance manufacturer in 1977.
“I hope they do something good with it,” she said of the vacant lot where Westinghouse once sat. “We definitely need jobs in the area — and stores.”
What’s next for Westinghouse?
Attendees at the WestingHOUSE Party shared various ideas for what they’d like to see in the space — from an amusement park to an arts district to an entertainment venue.
“Honestly, I’m a big sports fan. Flag football or a fairgrounds would be cool,” said 11-year-old Ewan Nugent as he leaned against the fence of the beer garden, feet balanced atop a soccer ball.
Many attendees expressed a hope the former WestingHOUSE site will remain a gathering space.
“I hope they keep doing this year after year,” said Charles Seward, who lives not far from the site. “I don’t want to see an apartment complex in. I hope they keep something for the community.”
Several said they’d like to see a mix of housing and businesses, which aligns with recommendations in the Westinghouse Site Reuse Plan, conducted by landscape architecture and urban design firm SGA.
The 14-acre site is owned by the Richland County Land Bank, a public-private entity aimed at eliminating blight and facilitating development.
Tony Vero, a county commissioner and member of the Richland County Land Bank, said the board will need to be “very picky” about the future of the site.
“A lot of money went into getting the site available for development, but more importantly, a lot of community work in sweat and tears went into this,” he said.
“It doesn’t even need to be one developer, right? You get an anchor building here or an anchor business, and it grows from there.”
As for Vero, he’d love to see a mixed-use development with housing, businesses, breweries and a grocery store.
Perhaps “the Westinghouse district” could be the city’s next big economic driver.
“It’s not often a parcel of this size becomes available in any municipal or downtown area,” Vero said. “The sky’s the limit.”
