NEW HAVEN — The U.S. Repeating Arms Co. facility shut down Wednesday afternoon, ending a 140-year legacy two days ahead of schedule and putting 186 people out of work. "It’s an emotional experience," said Facility Director Paul DeMennato. "We’ve run out of work, and the guns that have been manufactured up to the parts that were available were packed and shipped." Ironically, at the same time that workers were being told to leave, city officials were meeting with state officials in Hartford to discuss finding a buyer for the 244 Winchester Ave. facility. A consortium of groups led by City Hall has been working to locate a buyer to take over production of Winchester rifles since the shutdown was announced in January, hoping to find an interested company before the March 31 shutdown date. Several firearms manufacturers have visited the plant, including Smith & Wesson last weekend. The 186 workers became eligible this week for federal Trade Adjustment Assistance through the state Department of Labor. The funds go to workers affected by import competition. Also, the workers will receive severance packages that vary according to years of service. Larry Edwards, a tool maker at USRAC, said he is preparing to go through the unemployment process. Like others at the facility, he had been hoping that a buyer would be found and the jobs saved. Now he said he hopes to find a position elsewhere as a tool maker. "I still feel like I have a battle to fight," he said. International Association of Machinists Local 609 hopes to continue negotiating with USRAC’s parent company, Belgium-based Herstal Group, to add to the severance package. Union officials did not return phone calls Wednesday, nor did city officials. A contingent of USRAC workers petitioned Gov. M. Jodi Rell Tuesday to take a role in seeking a buyer. On Wednesday, representatives from Rell’s office and Department of Economic and Community Development Commissioner James Abromaitis met with city officials to discuss goals for the facility. "It was really a meeting to get everybody around the table," Abromaitis said. "Our primary concern is for those who have lost their jobs." Finding a buyer for the facility is the top goal, he said, with the state standing by to assist workers left jobless by the closing. "It is not the building we care about, it is the workers inside that building (whom) we care about," Rell said in a statement. "We will continue to fight hard to keep these jobs right here in Connecticut." City officials have said they are still negotiating with Herstal, as well as with Utah-based Olin Corp., which holds the license to the Winchester brand. Several weeks ago, they offered Herstal a deal that would forgive $17 million in tax abatements, lease obligations and workers’ pay that it says the company owes in return for the facility. The company disputed the city’s figures. -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Damian J. Troise can be reached at [email protected] or 789-5685