A local group which recently bought a bankrupt brewing operation hopes to make a new home for it in Hummeltown’s former borough building.
Ghost Brewing LLC is operated by a group which includes Hummelstown native Mike VanGavree. Last month, the group bought the assets of Rubber Soul Brewing, which was based in Maryland.
The group hopes to operate Rubber Soul out of Hummelstown’s former municipal building in the 100 block of South Hanover Street. It bought the building along with an adjacent home for $315,250 last month, according to a news release from Dauphin County The borough moved its operations to a new location in 2017.
“The Rubber Soul brand recognition is remarkable, and Hummelstown is a great place for a brewery to capture some of the overflow from Hershey and the related tourism,’’ VanGavree said in the new release. “I grew up here and my family is here, and I liked the idea of bringing this opportunity to Hummelstown.’’
He expects about 12 people will initially work at the operation. If Ghost Brewing can’t obtain borough permission to operate the brewery, it would convert the space for office use.
Dauphin County Commissioners called attention to the project this week, noting it made use of federal funds given to the county to conduct environmental assessments at sites in need of redevelopment. The county has recently received “brownfield assessment grants” from the federal Environmental Protection Agency totaling $700,000.
Using $4,500 of the grant money to conduct an environmental assessment of the Hummelstown property helped the deal come together, commissioners said. They said the assessments are important because they allow potential developers to know what environmental cleanup costs and liabilities they might face.
“When a business takes over a vacant commercial or industrial site, they turn a drain on the community into a prized asset that create jobs and adds to the tax base,” Commissioner George P. Hartwick, III said.
Ghost Brewing paid $205,000 for the Rubber Soul assets, according to the Central Penn Business Journal.