ILION, NY – The sale of the Remington Outdoor Company, including the Ilion plant, is in court hands now, as the company is in Chapter 11 bankruptcy for the second time in so many years. Company officials have no control over the outcome or whether the weapons will be manufactured in Ilion once the sale is complete.
“It remains to be seen where we make weapons. That will honestly depend on the new owners, as to what they do with the business and which sites they continue. We have high hopes and are optimistic, but I do not know if I would say that it is probable,” says the media contact, Billy Hogue. “Our business is in the hands of the courts and the courts will execute this bidding process and we cannot guarantee the result.”
Ilion Mayor Brian Lamica worked at the Remington Arms for a short time and has family members who worked at the plant. For him, the words “bankruptcy” and “auction” are troubling.
“It is being dismantled, it is auctioning equipment, buildings, it is auctioning Ilion’s past, it is our history. Therefore, an auction would not be the way we want everything to go,” says Lamica.
The Ilion plant produces more than just weapons; For 200 years, it has made a living for many in the village and beyond. Franco’s, in Ilion, sees Remington workers during three lunch shifts, every day. If the plant were to close, it would hurt them, but the owner is concerned about more than just himself.
“It means everything. That is this whole community. That is the greatest place around here. They have been here so long, I mean these people have raised their families working there, generations upon generations of families worked there, and it would be a great impact. It would be like closing Griffiss in Rome, “says the owner, Daniel Méndez.
