Grant paves way for demolition of Waubeka Mill

Ozaukee County has been awarded a grant from the Wisconsin Economic Development Corp. to assess whether the Waubeka Mill and Button Factory are a brownfield site in need of further remediation.

The $142,800 grant is dependent on the site’s owner granting permission to the county and state Department of Natural Resources to access the site, according to a memo to the county Natural Resources Committee, which is scheduled to vote next week on accepting the grant and recommending it to the County Board.

The Fredonia Town Board in June voted to exercise its power of eminent domain to take both properties from owners Charles Sheridan and his son.

In August, the Town Board authorized Town Chairman Chris Janik to execute an intergovernmental agreement between the town and Ozaukee County so they can work together to demolish the buildings and give the parcels to the county, which likely would turn them into a boat launch and park, officials have said.

Both the mill and Button Factory buildings are dilapidated and are non-conforming structures located in a flood hazard zone and don’t meet setback requirements. 

Neither have been in use for many years.

They “would not be buildable under any circumstances,” county Planning and Parks Director Andrew Struck told the committee in September.

The grant will help pay for investigating environmental contamination, demolition of the buildings, removal of abandoned containers, asbestos abatement activities and removal of underground storage tanks, including petroleum product storage tanks, according to the memo.

An underground storage tank on the Waubeka Mill parcel was previously identified and remediated, but residual groundwater and soil contamination is believed to still be present on the property.

Matching funds totaling $35,700 are required from the county, bringing the total cost to $178,000.

The matching funds will be provided from the county’s capital fund.

Sheridan bought the Button Factory in a 1990 Sheriff’s auction and the mill in 2019 for $1,000, later turning it over to his son.

Sheridan looked at turning the buildings into a number of businesses or residences for several years without success.

The mill has asbestos, a cracked foundation and a roof in need of repairs.

Plans for the Button Factory, which is on the National Register of Historic Places, fell through since it doesn’t meet setback requirements.