Cianbro officials to unveil plans for former Pittsfield shoe factory

PITTSFIELD – Officials from the Cianbro Co. will appear before the Pittsfield planning board Monday night to outline their plans for the former San Antonio Shoe factory and warehouse off Waverly Avenue.

The buildings were emptied this past summer after Texas-based SAS closed its only Maine factory and laid off 145 local workers.

The Cianbro Co. is the East Coast’s largest civil and heavy industrial construction firm and operates in about 15 states with regional offices in Baltimore, Bloomfield, Conn., Portland and Pittsfield.

It is the parent of several other companies, including Cianbro Corp.; Cianbro Fabrication and Coatings; Cianbro Construction LLC, which is working on the Brewer module fabrication project; Cianbro Equipment LLC, which leases equipment back to Cianbro Corp.; and Cianbro Development, a real estate division. The company does $450 million in annual sales and has more than 2,500 employees, according to its Web site.

Town officials said the company plans to use the former factory as a national training site and the warehouse for storage. Repeated calls to officials at Cianbro Friday did not yield any further information.

Pittsfield Code Enforcement Officer Steve Seekins said no plans have been submitted to the town by the company because Monday’s meeting is the company’s first opportunity to share its proposal with the planning board.

It is listed on the board’s agenda as a “site plan review preapplication conference,” and Seekins said that if the use of the property does not substantially change, Cianbro may not need any planning board approval.

The meeting begins at 7 p.m. in the council chambers of the municipal building.

bdnpittsfield@verizon.net

487-3187