An iconic New Jersey paper mill that burned to the ground earlier this year will reopen in 2020, a potential boon for the hundreds of workers displaced in the devastating blaze.
Fire crews from around the area battled the blaze at the Marcal Paper Mills in Elmwood Park amid frigid weather in late January, but 30 of the 36 buildings on the 30-acre compound were demolished, as well as the iconic red sign visible for years along Route 80.
The fire was so massive, smoke from the blaze was visible on Storm Tracker 4's radar. A subsequent fire on the site in February caused further damage, and demolition of the remnants began in August.
On Monday, Marcal said it will return to operation "sometime in January," helped in part by a merger with a Pennsylvania company that will give it someplace to convert the paper rolls it makes at the remaining facilities in Elmwood Park.
“We’ve all waited 330 days to be able to say that Marcal was ‘back in business.’ That day has arrived," Marcal CEO Rob Baron said in a statement.
NorthJersey.com was first to report the planned reopening.