The 16 1/2 acre piece of land next to the old GE plant, known as Site 9, has been sitting empty for decades. And now, the city of Pittsfield has secured funding to start readying the site for future development.
Tuesday, the state announced Pittsfield will receive $880,000 from its Site Readiness Program.
Combined with other grants, the money will be used to start evaluating the site and begin construction.
The first steps include testing the soil, breaking up the existing concrete foundations, and applying a four-foot capping layer, turning the site into green space.
Mayor Linda Tyer said this will allow the city to attract a wide range of new businesses to the long vacant property.
"We'll be able to complete a scope of work that's critical to initiating the site's redevelopment, making it a more attractive option for private sector development, including industrial, manufacturing, warehouse, commercial, and retail offices," said Tyer.
"I've taken several companies over there to visit the location, but they have all been reluctant to invest there because of the unknown cost associated with the preparation of the site, so we needed to do something different, we needed to do something to kick off the development of this site," said Michael Coakley, executive director of the Pittsfield Economic Development Authority.
It will still be several years before businesses move to the site, but the hope is to start some construction by the end of this year.