Mount Airy Cold Storage warehouse shut, razed

Friday, Aug. 31, 2007

Mount Airy Cold Storage warehouse shut, razed

Owner consolidates operations in Perryville facility

by Rebecca McClay | Staff Writer

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The owner of a refrigerated warehouse and distribution center in Mount Airy has closed the facility, consolidating its operations with a larger unit in Perryville.

Mount Airy Cold Storage, owned by MHW Group of Owings Mills, employed 30 people and will double its operations to employ about 60 people in Perryville, which is in Cecil County near Havre de Grace, said president and CEO Marvin H. Weiner.

The Mount Airy building is being demolished this week, Weiner said. MHW Group still owns the property and is mulling plans for it.

The company opened the Mount Airy warehouse in 1975 and expanded it three times — in 1976, 1980 and 1985. Weiner declined to identify his customers or say what products the facility handled.

MHW’s Chambersburg (Pa.) Cold Storage opened in 1995 and has been expanded twice. MHW opened cold storage facilities in 2001 in Wisconsin and in 2002 in Minnesota.

The MHW Group also owns Cryo-Trans Logistics, a truck brokerage company, and Cryo-Trans Inc., which includes more than 875 refrigerated railcars.

Kier Knight, the Greater Mt. Airy Chamber of Commerce’s advertising and marketing committee chairman, said he hoped a new business on the scale of the cold storage facility would move to the site. Many prospective business owners have had difficulty securing approvals and permits as the town has struggled with water supply and has limited water allocations.

‘‘In terms of commercial space in the future, it’s going to be a prime spot,” Knightly said of the warehouse site.

Carol Cahill, owner of the Main Event and president of the Mount Airy chamber, said Weiner and his company were ‘‘always very supportive of activities and events downtown.”

‘‘It was a very unique business with a wonderful business reputation,” Cahill said. ‘‘We’ll miss him.”