Avon Lake Power Plant To Close, Public Lakefront Space Coming

AVON LAKE, OH — Avon Lake is closing the Avon Lake Generating Station, a coal-fired power plant.

Approximately 55 employees will be impacted by the shutdown, the city announced. City officials vowed to work with Ohio Means Jobs Lorain Count to aid their transition.

The plant has been part of Avon Lake for nearly a century, the city noted. However, closing the facility allows Avon Lake to redevelop the 40-acre site into a publicly accessible lakefront property.

“We’re excited about this remarkable opportunity for a transformative redevelopment for Avon Lake,” said Mayor Gregory Zilka. “This project will open up a prime 40-acre site on Lake Erie to the public, while also allowing us to take a giant step forward in cleaning up our environment and improving the quality of life for everyone in our community.”

The city's plan to shutter the facility is subject to review by the market regulator PJM. The plant is currently owned by GenOn Holdings, Inc. The company has expressed support for the plan and intends to hand the site off to another company that demolish and remediate the site over two to three years.

The transfer of the plant away from GenOn will likely close this fall, the city said. Avon Lake officials will apply for federal brownfield grants and other resources to help clean-up the site and redevelop it.

City officials said Avon Lake residents should see "little to no impact on energy availability" or what they're paying for energy. The Avon Lake plant only operated at peak usage times.

Avon Lake officials anticipate the loss of property tax revenue from the plant, though impacts should be off-set by new housing and business development.

“The innovative skills of our partners combined with our determination to take advantage of suddenly gaining a half-mile of lakefront land equal a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity,” said Zilka. “We plan to take advantage of it.”