BUCKTOWN — A scrap metal recycling yard located along the banks of the Chicago River and across from the former A. Finkl & Sons plant has closed after 39 years in business for what a sign out front calls "market conditions."
Around 6:45 a.m. Monday, workers were observed putting up closed signs on Sims Metal Management's yard at 1509 W. Cortland St.
A human resources worker who was leaving the 4.5-acre property said six workers were employed at the center. The worker referred inquiries to the New York-based office.
Industry reports indicate a weakening demand for scrap metal.
Sims Metal Management operates 270 scrap yards on five continents, according to its website. The Cortland facility's industrial land is owned by Metal Management Midwest, according to county records.
Metal Management Midwest CEO Lewis H. Ross was unable to be reached for comment. Brad Rosynek, the facility's business manager, did not return requests for comment early Monday.
The industrial property, considered to be prime riverfront real estate and "poised for redevelopment" according to a real estate website Loopnet.com, is located in Ald. Brian Hopkins (2nd) ward.
Hopkins previously said the redevelopment of the Finkl site and surrounding industrial corridor was one of the reasons he was running for alderman of the gerrymandered "New 2" ward.
The now-closed yard, located steps from the Cortland Street Drawbridge, which underwent repairs over the summer and reopened to motorized traffic last month, was one of two recycling yards within a few blocks. City Scrap Metal, 1815 N. Kingsbury Ave. is still open.
What will happen to the roughly 28 acres of prime real estate at the site of the former A. Finkl & Sons Co. steel plant just east of the scrap yard is a burning question in the neighborhood.
Community leaders say whatever is built in its place — which has yet to be revealed, though there have been speculations — will shape the future of the Lincoln Park and Bucktown areas.
Sims Metal Management's Cortland Facility [DNAinfo/Alisa Hauser]
View of Chicago skyline from the Cortland Street Bridge, next to Sims Metal Management's now closed Cortland Facility.
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