Crystal Cold Celebrates Expansion on Former Rath Site as EPA Presents the city with a $642K Check

On Thursday, June 8, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) Region 7 will present a $642,400 ceremonial check to the City of Waterloo, Iowa. The city will host the ceremony near the Crystal Cold Storage site at 1656 Sycamore Street. 

In conjunction, Crystal Cold is celebrating the opening of its new refrigerated facility in part to replace the aging Rath building. By moving into this 100,000 square foot cold storage warehouse on the former Rath site, the company continues to become more state-of-the-art and can operate the facility on one level. This 21-million-dollar investment is the latest in a number of expansions for Crystal Cold. 
“We’ve had a really good partnership with the city since 1985 when we first moved into the Rath building, and with the help of the city we’ve been able to continually expand and are looking forward to future growth,” says Tom Poe, Crystal Cold President.  

EPA selected the City of Waterloo for cleanup at the former Rath Buildings property at 1442 Sycamore Street, a site that is contaminated with metals, polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs) and inorganic contaminants.

This grant is supported by President Joe Biden’s Bipartisan Infrastructure Law, which provides a total of $1.5 billion to advance environmental justice, spur economic revitalization, and create jobs by cleaning up contaminated, polluted, or hazardous brownfield properties.

“We are strongly encouraged by the partnership between the EPA and the City of Waterloo to impact business growth and development through this sizeable grant. To see renewed activity in the historic Rath neighborhood will help ensure the area is environmentally sound, produce more jobs and expand Crystal’s business footprint. A win for all involved,” says Mayor Quentin Hart, City of Waterloo. 

WHAT: EPA ceremonial check presentation to City of Waterloo & Crystal Cold ribbon cutting 
WHEN: Thursday, June 8, at 10:30 a.m.
WHERE: 1656 Sycamore Street, Waterloo, Iowa