Officials to Discuss Demolition at Paper Mill Site in Otsego On 08/17/2021

OTSEGO, Mich. (AP) — Officials in southwestern Michigan are expected to update residents on demolition and cleanup efforts at the site of a vacant paper mill.

A public meeting is scheduled Aug. 17 in Otsego in Allegan County.

The county will oversee the razing of buildings at the former Rock-Tenn mill this summer and fall. The 32-acre (12.9 hectare) site is about 35 miles (56 kilometers) south of Grand Rapids. The mill closed in 2004 and the property was sold in 2006. It went into foreclosure in 2011 due to unpaid property taxes and now is owned by the county. The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency was called in late 2011 after county officials discovered chemicals on the property. The EPA later said about 200 drums and bins of waste was found. Rock-Tenn Co. agreed to remove the containers although it wasn’t the last owner of the site and it was not clear when the containers were left.