Plant closing leaves many wondering

For the nearly 60 employees who worked there, the last day at Brownville Specialty Paper Products Inc. was full of hard work and fears about what would happen when they would all be out of a job.

The two-day notice of the plant's imminent closure also had local officials scrambling to figure out what impact the loss of the plant would have and how they could help those left unemployed.

Like so many days before, plant employees worked 12-hour shifts on Thursday, stopping every so often along a cardboard-strewn wall for a cup of coffee and a cigarette with friends.

Inside, the machines were still churning paper. Outside, tractor-trailers were lined up in the parking lot and down the street, waiting to take on the last loads of product.

Two days before, owners Donald C. Alexander, Richard C. Howland and F. Gene Rood had made the announcement to employees that the 1 Bridge St. plant would close by the end of the week. The three owners blamed six months of losses, coupled with skyrocketing costs of fuel, electricity and raw materials for forcing them to shut down.

They told their employees that the plant's pressboard business had been sold to FiberMark North America Inc., Brattleboro, Vt., and the Graphic Arts and Cap Closure product lines to Climax Manufacturing Co., Lowville.

Although the plant normally employs 75 people, there were only 59 employees at the time of the announcement, according to Michael R. Schantz, Brownville Specialty Paper human resources manager and director of purchasing. He said the plant had been in the process of hiring more workers to make up the numbers.

Asked about the mood on the floor, Mr. Schantz said the employees were "disheartened."

"A lot of people are sorry to see it close down," he said.

Taking a break outside the plant Thursday afternoon, 49-year-old Christopher R. Lacomb and 59-year-old Anthony Mortellaro said the announcement was abrupt, but not unexpected. Rumors of the closure had been swirling for the past year.

Neither man was sure where he would turn for employment, particularly after so long with Brownville Specialty Paper.

"I don't think it'll be Climax. FiberMark is an option, but I'd like to rest for awhile," Mr. Lacomb said. "After 18 years, it's hard for anybody to start over."

Mr. Lacomb, who greeted men by name as they passed in and out of the plant's side door, said he would particularly miss the daily contact he had with his fellow workers.

"We're here more than we're with our families," he said.

Having the plant close was not a new experience for Mr. Mortellaro, who worked at the same location under Boise Cascade, which closed the Brownville location in 1988. Mr. Mortellaro was then hired by competitor Climax Manufacturing Co., but he went back to Brownville Specialty Paper when the three current owners reopened the site in 1991.

"I've gone through this once," he said. "I think it is harder this time. I was younger before. It wasn't a problem to get a job."

While Brownville Specialty Paper employees wondered what would be next for them, supervisors from the towns of Brownville and Hounsfield were worrying about the local effects of the closure. Brownville Specialty Paper employed many residents from the town of Brownville and paid taxes to both the town of Hounsfield and the General Brown Central School District.

Hounsfield Supervisor Jean H. Derouin said he had been shocked by the announcement. Calling Brownville Specialty Paper a "major player in the town of Hounsfield as far as taxes are concerned," Mr. Derouin said he was still trying to figure out what financial implications the loss of the plant might have for the town.

This is not the first time a paper mill has closed down or moved away from the area, he said. Mr. Derouin, who experienced a similar situation as an employee of the former Bomax plant, said he was mainly concerned about the Brownville Specialty Paper employees.

"Where do these people go to find jobs, especially now that manufacturing is not the main industry?" he said. "The impacts are huge, not just in the town of Hounsfield, but everywhere."

Brownville Supervisor Leo K. Thompson agreed, noting that the plant had been employing scores of local workers for "as long as I can remember."

"You look up and down the street and think, 'Oh geez, that guy used to work in the paper mill,'" Mr. Thompson said. "They've really been a good source of employment for this area."

Deborah A. Van Epps, employment and training coordinator for the Jefferson County Department of Employment and Training, said her agency had dropped off 59 packets at the plant Thursday with information to help the workers.

The employment and training office, on the Jefferson Community College campus, will hold sessions at 10 a.m. and 2 p.m. Monday to help the employees find new work. She said the office would provide training on updating resumes, a list of local employers, a job-hunting handbook and counselors to answer unemployment insurance questions.

"When one door closes, another one usually opens," Mrs. Van Epps said. "It's hard to see that at the time. Eventually they'll be able to come to that perspective, hopefully."

Mrs. Van Epps spent Thursday afternoon calling local employers to see if they had any vacancies. North American Tapes LLC responded with two vacancies and Morris Hatchery Inc., which opened the Northstar Hatchery at the Jefferson County Corporate Park this week, also expressed interest in hiring some workers.

Jeffrey L. Pierce, vice president of North American sales and marketing for Morris Hatchery, said he was looking for staff initially to work part time.

"There might be some people there who would at least like to come in and see if we're a good fit for them and to see if they're a good fit for us," he said. "Those that like the job and do the job well can gradually turn it into full time."

Back at Brownville Specialty Paper, most employees said they hadn't decided where they would apply for their next job.

"I'm going to weigh my options. I'm going to talk to some people," said one man, who identified himself only as Mike.

Mr. Lacomb and Mr. Mortellaro finished their coffees and headed back inside. But Mike and a handful of other men had finished their shifts.

So, their last day done, they said good-bye to friends, some of whom they had worked with and joked with for decades, tucked blue folders from the Department of Employment and Training under their arms and walked across the busy road to their cars.