USA, MI: Pigeon Hill Brewing Company’s new facility expected to be operational by March 2019

Pigeon Hill Brewing Company owners expect to be brewing in a new $2 million facility by March 2019, MLive.com reported on July 24.

Construction on the brewhouse at the corner of Shoreline Drive and Fourth Street in downtown Muskegon is expected to begin in August, said co-owner Joel Kamp.

Owners Kamp, Michael Brower and Chad Doane have been working toward the facility for more than a year.

March 2019 will mark the Muskegon brewery's fifth anniversary.

The new space at 895 Fourth St. is for production, along with scheduled tours and tastings, Kamp said.

The main taproom will remain at 500 W. Western Ave. until 2021, when the company's lease will expire. At that point, the owners expect to move the taproom to a two-story building they own at 441 W. Western Ave., which is the current 7,000-square-foot brewing facility.

The new 15,000-square-foot, two-story building will have a dark blue and wooden facade facing Shoreline. A potential retail area will face Fourth. A large grain silo will also be visible at the front of the building.

The building is designed to allow additions. An agreement with the city allows up to 30,000-square-feet in additions.

The building and land investment is expected to total about $1.7 million, Kamp said. New equipment will cost $300,000-$350,000.

Owners originally expected to break ground in March 2018.

"There's a lot of things coming together," Kamp said. "We're doing what we can."

The sale of the 77,000-square-foot property for $98,400 was approved by the Muskegon City Commission in November 2017.

In March, the city granted a 10-year, 50-percent tax abatement for the project. As a result, the city will collect additional property taxes generated by the expansion, a total of $4,093 annually. The company will save the same amount.

In May, the city approved brownfield redevelopment tax increment financing for the property. That means Pigeon Hill will be reimbursed for "eligible activities" costing up to $435,351.51 over a term of up to 26 years. Eligible activities include an environmental assessment and clean up activities.

Pigeon Hill opened in March 2014.

24 July, 2018