Source: City of Kalamazoo
Department: Economic Development
Phone: (269) 337-8082
Email: cokEconomicDevelopment@kalamazoocity.org

The City of Kalamazoo’s Brownfield Redevelopment Authority (BRA), along with Fabri-Kal Corporation and the State of Michigan, was pleased to announce plans today for Fabri-Kal to relocate its current operations to the former Mead Paper facility, a brownfield site located at 4141 Manchester Road. The project is expected to create up to 160 jobs over the next five years and retain 42 positions.

A brownfield tax credit valued at $3.5 million will help the company return the vacant, functionally obsolete facility to a state-of-the-art manufacturing and design plant. Michigan brownfield programs provide incentives to invest in property that has been used for industrial, commercial, or residential purposes and to keep that property in productive use.

Marc Hatton, City of Kalamazoo Redevelopment Project Manager, said, “We’ve worked hard with Fabri-Kal to realize this project. It is important and quite an achievement in this economic climate to retain a home-grown business, help foster a climate in which the company can enhance its competitiveness and grow, assist in providing quality employment opportunities for our community, all while redeveloping a brownfield site. We’re excited to continue this partnership with Fabri-Kal and expand the Brownfield Redevelopment Authority’s portfolio with such a quality project.”

The former 400,000 sq-ft paper facility will house Fabri-Kal’s new Technical Center, Innovation Center, XP Division, a large-scale plastic packaging, and manufacturing space. The $41 million dollar project to renovate the existing property will take place over the next five years and is scheduled to open early in the third quarter of 2008.

“Fabri-Kal is proud to revitalize this brownfield in Kalamazoo, while adding to the employment base of the community in which we were founded,” said Gary Gailia, Executive Vice President of Finance, Fabri-Kal Corporation.

This announcement is in addition to a long line of successful brownfield projects such as: MacKenzie’s Bakery, Textile Systems, Inc., Speareflex Block, Kalamazoo Gazette expansion, South & Rose (Miller-Canfield Law Offices), Stryker Headquarters, Rave Theatre, Alumilite and many more.

City of Kalamazoo Economic Development staff coordinate with the Brownfield Redevelopment Authority and the Economic Development Corporation to provide an award-winning