“We’re hitting the ground running,” Williams said. “We and Honeywell share the same strong commitment. Everybody wants to see the property cleaned up, and we’ve already started a process for achieving that important goal.”

Indeed, the two companies already have a working history, having previously partnered on two other local remediation and redevelopment projects – the former Buffalo Color property on Elk Street near the Buffalo River and a former 100-year-old battery plant on Highland Avenue in Niagara Falls.

In the first case, the two spent $25 million on a cleanup of the property, which is now home to the Medaille Sports Complex at Buffalo Color Park while Williams is renovating the former Schoellkopf Power House across the street into a $10 million facility with office, commercial, residential and event space.

In the second, the Niagara Falls site now holds a new $11.7 million manufacturing facility for Tulip Molded Plastics, while a separate portion of the property is being converted into a new park for the city. The cleanup came just three years after the state approached Honeywell about responsibility for the site. "That's not a corporate citizen that is irresponsible," Williams said.