This semester, 15 student journalists delved 60 years deep into Newark's past.
The students of Ralph Begleiter's Broadcast News Documentary class made a film exploring the history of the Chrysler plant, from its beginnings as a tank factory during the Korean War to its closing in December 2008.
The team of producers and reporters who made Left Behind: Chrysler's Newark Assembly Plant Past, Present and Future, decided on the plant as the subject for the film because the university is poised to buy the 270-acre property.
Although the university has not announced its plans for the site, among the possibilities are agricultural land, sports facilities, dorms or classrooms. Senior Julie Wigley, a co-producer of the film, said the most likely candidate is a technology park, which would provide jobs and promote education.
The class asked several Newark residents their opinions on what should happen to the land, and some said it should be used for the community instead of the university. Last week, however, university trustees announced their right to eminent domain, which means they can commandeer the land for educational purposes.
Wigley said, because of that, building a community center is unlikely.
"Mayor Funk gave us one of the best quotes, 'As mayor I should probably say they should clean it up and make a park, but Newark needs jobs,' " Wigley said.
The students gained unprecedented access to the plant thanks in part to efforts by Begleiter.
Begleiter said the challenges of the project, such as getting inside the plant, were a learning experience for the students.
"A news documentary is not the same thing as a documentary you might see on the Discovery Channel," Begleiter said. "They don't have a political edge to them, and a news documentary always has that."
The students were taken on a four-hour tour of the plant, accompanied by Chrysler representatives from Washington, D.C. and Detroit, as well as Frank B. Rhodes, Jr., great-grandson of the founder of the Chrysler corporation, Walter P. Chrysler.
Wigley and co-producer Rachel Alper, also a senior, said they were both moved by the eeriness of the closed plant.
"It looked like they dropped what they were doing on their shift and walked out," Alper said.
She noticed a deck of cards on the table and Christmas garland still decorating the walls.
Wigley said machines were sitting idle, still holding parts.
"It looked like all you had to do was turn it on and it would start popping cars out again," she said.
Senior Luciano LaPenta, the film's editor, said making this film taught him a lot about the importance of the Chrysler plant to Newark's economy.
"Growing up here, I never realized how much it affected everything in the area as much as it does, and how many people actually worked there and how, along with the university, it ran this town for so long," LaPenta said.
In addition to the 2,100 employees who lost their jobs in the last two years, others felt the effects of the plant's closing also.
LaPenta said several Chrysler employees used to go to Malin's Market on Route 896 every day for lunch. Now the market has lost a lot of business.
LaPenta became more objective during the course of making the film as he learned how much Chrysler benefitted Newark by providing jobs and breaking down racial barriers.
"I went into this thing like, 'Let's take down Chrysler! Let's be whistle blowers, and turn it into a Michael Moore movie,' " LaPenta said. "And, at the end, we realized how much we couldn't take a completely negative spin because it did do a lot of good."
Despite the upside of Chrysler's presence in Newark, the film does not ignore the downside. In its decades of producing tanks and cars, the plant has left an unknown amount of pollution and contamination in its wake.
Begleiter said the plant racked up numerous fines for environmental violations, including the largest for $1.5 million, which was reduced to $300,000 the following year.
In the 1980s, two drinking water wells had to be closed due to pollution, and Chrysler's paint shop caught fire, bringing 300 firefighters to the scene. That incident forced them to change to a less volatile paint, which is now the norm for car factories.
The remains of paints, solvents, sealants, motor oil, fuel and antifreeze in the soil is an expensive problem for the next land owners.
Wigley said she does not know who will pay for the necessary extensive cleanup-Chrysler or the site's next owner.
Students are welcome to attend the free public screening on Thursday, May 21 at 11 a.m. in Room 116 of Gore Hall. Wigley said representatives from Chrysler, union workers, Newark residents, and Gov. Markell are expected to attend.
Wigley said she thinks the film will appeal to people because what happened in Newark happens everywhere.
"We're not the only small town that has a huge plant that affected so many people, and I think that this is just a small story of a bigger picture," she said. "I think that our message could spread further than just Newark and I hope that it will."
A closer look 1938: Chrysler buys 65 acres in Newark for a parts depot 1951: Ground broken for a tank factory, by 1952 full-scale tank production has begun, employment reaches 3,000 1956: Construction of 1.5 million square-foot Plymouth plant begins 1957: First Newark-built Plymouth rolls off assembly line 1960: Chrysler begins production of new economy car, the Valiant 1962: Defense Secretary Robert McNamara shuts down Newark tank factory, along with 52 other defense plants 1965: The millionth Newark-built car rolls off assembly line 1980: Delaware becomes first state to approve loaning Chrysler money as part of billion-dollar bailout plan 1988: Chrysler spends more than $300 million retooling Newark plant for new Dodge Spirit and Plymouth Acclaim 1990: Partial production begins on Chrysler LeBaron 1993: Chrysler announces plans to phase out Spirit and Acclaim, and begin production of Dodge Intrepid, previously built in Canada 1994: Chrysler announces layoffs due to phase out of Spirit and Acclaim 2004: Chrysler invests millions in upgrades to Newark plant to produced redesigned Dodge Durango 2005: Sales slump Summer 2005: Popular employee discounts begin for all customers, but still lagging sales January 2006: Chrysler Group to build all-new 2007 Chrysler Aspen at Newark Plant Feb 2007: Chrysler announces closing of Newark plant in 2009 May 2007: DaimlerChrysler AG announces sale of American arm of Chrysler to Cerberus Capital Management, LLP, a US private equity firm for $7.4 billion August 2007: Chrysler acquired by Cerberus Capital Management June 2008: Chrysler puts Newark plant up for sale July 2008: Deadline for bids passes, University of Delaware and Pettinaro Enterprises of Newport said to be among finalists October 2008: Chrysler announces closing of Newark plant, effective Dec. 31 - compiled by Cassie Kalinger
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