The former Moxham Streetcar Barns in Cambria County will be repurposed to house a new, advanced manufacturing enterprise by the Swedish company Hoganas, which plans to use the buildings as part of their high-tech powdered metals manufacturing factory and create at least 20 new jobs.

In an effort to jumpstart the project, the Johnstown Redevelopment Authority received a $200,000 grant to assess soil, ground water and air quality at the site, Department of Community and Economic Development Secretary Rick Siger announced Wednesday. The grant was made available through the Industrial Sites Reuse Program.

The Moxham Streetcar Barns were built in the late 1800s and later became the “Bus Barn” for the Cambria Transit Authority. The Johnstown Redevelopment Authority has been working on redeveloping the facility since they acquired the site from the Cambria Transit Authority in 2019.

“By investing in the environmental assessment of the former Moxham Bus Barns, we’re helping move this project one step closer to redevelopment — ushering in a new advanced manufacturing operation, new jobs in Johnstown and a stronger local economy,” Siger said. “Through the Industrial Sites Reuse Program, we’re cleaning up legacy industrial sites, protecting the health of our communities and positioning the Commonwealth for continued economic growth.”

This assessment will include the collection of ground water samples, soil borings and indoor air samples for analysis, the installation of five groundwater monitoring wells and the collection of samples from those wells for analysis.