cleanup · Niagara County
Witmer Road Drive-In
Town of Niagara
Former theater at 4287 Witmer Road with documented industrial fill and environmental investigations. DEC site 932118 is separate from the James Avenue/Witmer Road Disposal Site (932027).
The documented story
What happened here?
The 1989 assessment describes a 1.72-acre investigated parcel beside Gill Creek. The theater also occupied adjoining land; this record does not define the full theater footprint or a contamination boundary.
This is a different property from the Witmer Road Disposal Site at James Avenue, DEC 932027. Similar names do not establish shared waste sources.
Chronology in context
Turning points in the public record
Before 1953
The 1989 assessment identifies earlier farmland and filling or land disturbance visible in 1951 photography. Land disturbance alone does not identify the waste producer or chemical composition.
1953–1986
A drive-in theater operated on the parcel and adjoining land to the south and west, according to the 1989 assessment.
1958 and 1966
Aerial photographs reviewed in the assessment showed filling activity.
1987–1991
ASTECO acquired the parcel in 1987 and built an office/laboratory. The 1989 assessment and 1991 investigation examined fill, groundwater and potential seepage toward Gill Creek.
1994–2008
DEC archives retain a waste-material investigation, a characterization work plan and a site-characterization report.
June–August 2020
A limited surface radiation survey informed NORLIC’s redevelopment action plan.
News record
Major news events
Coverage selected here marks a turning point in public awareness, policy, enforcement, employment, or cleanup. Links open at the original publisher or archive; WNYAtlas does not reproduce restricted articles or images.
Community groups request investigation and protective measures at former drive-in
Save Our Backyards Niagara and allied groups requested fencing, warning signs, a State Superfund Class 2 listing, and on- and off-site testing. They raised concerns about flooding and nearby homes; the release does not establish a measured off-site contaminant plume.
Save Our Backyards Niagara release, reproduced by The LOOW Down ↗Chemical guide
Chemicals named in this record
These links explain potential hazards and exposure pathways. A chemical named in a record does not establish that anyone was exposed or harmed.
Environmental record
Documented impacts
- The 1989 assessment recorded lime-like fill, glass, metal and brick, with elevated organic vapors prompting subsurface investigation.
- The 2020 plan estimates 5,500–6,000 cubic yards of lime-like material, extending south off-site. It identifies resin-associated toluene, xylene, ethylbenzene, phenols, arsenic, copper and lead, and chromium associated with lime-like fill. This is not an estimate of uniformly hazardous waste beneath theater parking spaces.
- The June 12, 2020 survey measured up to 24 µR/hour against an 8 µR/hour background. Vegetated areas were excluded; locations exceeding 21,000 counts per minute were surveyed only at their boundaries. These are historical measurements, not isotope identification or present-day exposure estimates.
Response
Cleanup and controls
- The 2020 plan recommends waste removal and radiation screening during soil disposal, with possible vapor investigation. Recommendations do not establish completed remediation.
Then and now
The site today
The reviewed documents establish investigation and cleanup planning, but do not establish a completed remedy.
The 2020 assessment did not find widespread groundwater impacts or significant effects on Gill Creek. Those dated conclusions do not settle current conditions.
Atlas connections
Connected places
These collections explain documented material, facility, waterway, ownership, or cleanup relationships. Inclusion does not imply that every place shares one contaminant source or plume.
Two separate Witmer Road investigation sites
Different DEC identifiers, properties and investigation histories. No shared waste source is established here.
Research status
Open questions
- Obtain subsequent cleanup decisions, disposal records and any updated sampling. Identify waste producers only with supporting records.
- Map location: DEC Remediation Sites GIS point for 932118, checked September 15, 2026; not a surveyed boundary.