TURNERS FALLS — The Turners Falls Paper Company, formerly known as the Southworth Company, abruptly ceased operation Wednesday, laying off employees and leaving questions about the future of the building the company occupied in the Strathmore complex.
“It was a shocker. At 6 o’clock in the morning that’s not what you expect to hear,” said 21-year employee Ricardo Aponte, who was driving from Southworth’s Agawam facility to Turners Falls when his boss called and said to turn around.
“They gave us paperwork, some places to apply,” Aponte continued. “I’ve got a family of five, a mortgage, car payments. Right now I have no idea what I’m going to do. I’m taking it all in, and waiting to make my next step.”
Repeated telephone calls to the paper company offices and a message left for Chief Financial Officer David Mika went unreturned Wednesday. Doors were locked at the Turners Falls location, which is near the intersection of Canal Street and Turners Falls Road. The building’s parking lot was empty, though the Paperlogic signs, a research division of the company, were still on the building.
Southworth had offices in Agawam, Turners Falls and Seattle, Wash., where no one responded to requests for comment.
Charles Blanker, who said he had worked at the historic mill since 1973, told a story similar to Aponte’s. Blanker said company executives informed the Turners Falls staff about the closing when they got to work at 9 a.m.
The announcement was sudden. But closure wasn’t completely unexpected. Blanker said they were told the company no longer had the financing to continue operations.
He said around 60 people worked at the Turners Falls location and that executives had names of other places that may be hiring, but didn’t have other employment assistance.
Mika told an area news source that financial viability in the paper industry had become more difficult.
John Helbig, a customer service executive at the company, declined comment when reached at home Wednesday evening.
The company traces its history back to 1839 and has been a privately owned company. Southworth bought the Esleeck Paper Co. and the mill in 2006. Esleeck had opened its mill in 1900.
In 2012, Southworth announced that it would sell one of its brands to another paper producer, Neenah Paper Inc., but kept its Turners Falls mill running. In that same time frame, Southworth bought the Madison Park Group, a marketer of greeting cards and specialty stationery in Seattle.
Attempts to reach someone for comment at the Madison Park Group also were unsuccessful.
It’s unclear who owns the Turners Falls building, which is part of the Strathmore Paper complex on the banks of the Connecticut River in Montague. The town owns most of the complex, acquired through tax delinquency of previous owners.
Public town records list Southworth Company, with an address of 265 Main St. in Agawam, as owning eight properties in town worth a total of $2,578,300.
Montague Town Administrator Steve Ellis confirmed that all indications are that the paper facility has been closed, as have other facilities owned by the Southworth Company.
“Looking forward, the town is hopeful that the building will quickly return to productive use and will work to actively support that outcome,” he said.
And what’s next for the employees? Aponte said he intends to apply to Hasbro, among other local businesses.
Reach Miranda Davis at 413-772-0261, ext. 280 or mdavis@recorder.com.