In 2006 we happened across an abandoned Extroplating Factory mere steps from the intersection of North 7th street and Bedford in Williamsburg. At the time we had no idea what we were getting into.

Adventure:
So I'm out doing really bad things with The Chef and we walk by this tagged up building. Chef goes up to the door and smells abandonment. Sure enough the fucking front door is unlocked. This is unfriggin believable. Hundreds of people walk by this abandoned building every day - yet not one of them was curious enough to give the door a little tug?

This building was filled with junk - everything from a huge vinyl record collection to piles of old 1990s computers and a forklift. And let's not forget the lines of bucket paint - more than enough for a graffiti writer to go on an all city roller bombing spree.

So what was this place?

History
Apparently it was a former electroplating and metal-finishing plant that closed in 1997. The EPA claimed that the now abandoned Extroplating Factory was cleaned it out - yet there was still plenty of crap stored in this place (as seen in the photos). According to the EPA: "EPA inspected the site this Spring at the city's request and found an incompatible mix of heavy metals, acids, corrosives and other hazardous materials improperly stored in leaking drums and bags. Several open vats and tanks containing a variety of chemicals and heavy metals are also inside the deteriorated building where fires and vandalism have occurred. Two trailers are parked outside the building that contain corrosives and acids in pails and drums.".

Today, this abandoned Extroplating Factory is completely gone. It was bulldozed in 2011, and replaced with apartments and a very large Starbucks (no, you can't make this stuff up).

With it's demolition, NYC lost one more industrial 'bando.