Next month marks the end of an era as the Remington Arms plant in the Mohawk Valley is set to close. It was one of many companies on the state Department of Labor's "work adjustment and retraining notification" notices for 2023.

The plant manufactures Remington-branded guns. But what's next for the employees and the community now that the plant that's supported both for years is shutting down?

Nicole Wilson is the career center manager at Herkimer Working Solutions. Growing up in Ilion, she knows firsthand how important the Remington Arms plant, now RemArms, is to the area.

Working at Herkimer Working Solutions, she also knows how rough the last several years have been for employees, between layoffs and when Remington Arms filed for bankruptcy, ultimately being purchased by the Roundhill Group.

Herkimer Working Solutions has, and will again, help employees at the plant find new jobs.

“We are going to kind of be like the first line of services for the employees of RemArms," Wilson said. "So we will be going in to the plant to talk to them about our services that we offer, which include job search assistance, resumé development and getting connections to different trainings, or different community agencies, depending on what each individual may need."

Wilson said there are more opportunities for employment in and around Herkimer County now compared to just a few years ago. On Monday, Gov. Kathy Hochul announced Herkimer is getting $10 million from the state to upgrade its downtown.

“We're seeing a lot of growth, especially with a lot of our manufacturers here locally that are offering competitive wages, which is something that a lot of these Remington employees will be looking forward to, as well as positions that might be very similar to what they've already been doing," said Wilson.

Vincent Bono of the Herkimer County Legislature agreed.

“There are thousands of jobs available in their skill set. In the three-county area where we are regionally here, there are thousands of jobs available. I know a lot of the manufacturers have already reached out to the employees of Remington,” Bono said.

“Our goal is to try to take what’s coming negatively and try to switch it into a positive," said Wilson.

There are concerns about how the closure will financially impact the village of Ilion. Wilson and Bono hope the plant doesn’t sit vacant, and that it will be given new purpose.

Spectrum News 1 reached out to RemArms and await a response.