Remediation is continuing at the former New Jersey Zinc Co. west plant side, and The Northface Industrial Park is expected to have 34 acres available for sale by the end of the year.

The company was granted a zoning permit Tuesday night for a temporary structure on the property.Developer George Petrole said after the meeting that Northface is moving toward opening a temporary construction entrance, pending receipt of a construction and driveway permit from the state Department of Transportation.In April, Northface Industrial Park had plans on display for proposed access to the 100-acre property along Route 248 and Mauch Chunk Road in Palmerton.The project proposes to provide new points for direct access from Route 248 and Delaware Avenue to the property, eliminating traffic from the site to Mauch Chunk Road, the only access now to the site.Without proper access to Route 248, it would be difficult for the Northface project to proceed to realization, Petrole has said.Petrole said the point of access study has been approved by PennDOT with no comment, and as a result, "we can apply for a temporary construction access.""We've had some phone calls, especially since there will be access from (Route) 248," he said. "We still believe the property is the best industrial development property in Carbon County, and we are marketing it as such, and are hoping to bring a developer into the property as soon as possible."As of November, five full-time jobs had been created as part of the remediation, as well as a number of part-time jobs on the site, Petrole said.Petrole previously said that the company turned down an offer less than a year after it purchased the site from a company that wanted to do recycling.He said at that time the property could attract Fortune 500 companies to Carbon County. Some offices, warehouses or industrial buildings could also be included in the industrial development area, Petrole said.The property had been in abandonment since Aug. 19, 2002, when the seller filed a Voluntary Petition for Relief under Chapter 11 of the United States Bankruptcy Code.