by Bea Peterson and Alex Brooks
The former Oak Building on lower John Street is coming down. From the street the boarded up building looks as it has for some time. From the rear is an entirely different story. Hoses are trained on the friable structure to keep dust to a minimum while a backhoe eats away at the old walls.
[private]The 50,000 square foot structure was built in 1896. It was the site where Cleveland Dodge created the Dodge Fibers Corporation and developed applications for “Teflon” coatings starting in 1955, which led to several industries and a great deal of employment in Hoosick Falls. It is currently owned by Honeywell. Preparation work began last week. Demolition started Monday, May 21, and is expected to take another two weeks. Site restoration will take an additional two weeks. After that the land will be for sale.
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