This rendering shows the proposed “flagship building” for the Reckitt/Mead Johnson facility at 725 E. Main Ave. Company officials unveiled preliminary plans for expansion and modernization of its campus to the city’s Planning Commission last Thursday. Commissioners tonight will hold a public hearing on the company’s request to rezone neighboring parcels at 605 and 633 E. Main for industrial use.
By Greg Chandler
Zeeland Record
The Zeeland Planning Commission will hold a public hearing tonight on a request by Reckitt/Mead Johnson Nutritionals to rezone two properties on East Main Avenue for industrial use as the company seeks to modernize its facilities.
The hearing will be at 6 p.m. in the main conference room of the Howard Miller Community Center, 14 S. Church St.
Mead Johnson & Company, LLC is asking the city to rezone the parcel at 633 E. Main Ave. from R-2 single-family and two-family residential to I-2 general industrial, and the parcel at 605 E. Main from R-3 two-family and multiple-family residential to I-2 general industrial.
Reckitt/Mead Johnson officials gave a presentation of their project concept to the Planning Commission last Thursday before a standing-room only crowd of more than 200 at the Howard Miller Community Center.
The company, which has about 500 employees, is proposing to invest $836 million into upgrading the Zeeland facility that has been in existence since 1924, representing “the largest-ever investment in our company’s 100-year history,” Mead Johnson legal director Justin Griner told commissioners.
Those in attendance for the presentation included opponents who say the project will have a negative impact on nearby residential neighborhoods as well as Reckitt/Mead Johnson employees, many of whom showed up wearing blue T-shirts with the company logo on them.
“Our assets are aging. We will not be able to use those assets forever,” said Art Pike, a site director for Mead Johnson, outlining the company’s rationale for its proposal. “We have to build new assets, because requirements change, regulatory requirements change. We have internal standards that we have to meet as well.”
Mead Johnson presented a preliminary site plan, calling for construction of about 350,000 square feet of new office and manufacturing space that includes a “flagship” building through which employees will enter.
“This investment in modernizing our operations in Zeeland reflects our commitment to sustained job creation and economic growth here in our local community, while also ensuring we maintain industry-leading quality standards and remain a trusted partner in pediatric nutrition,” company spokeswoman Elissa Dodge said.
Griner called the company’s Zeeland operations “critical to our domestic and global infant formula supply.”
“This facility has been a global hub for the production of our hypoallergenic infant formula Nutramigen, a specialized formula designed as a solution for babies with cow’s milk protein allergies,” Griner said.
Jennifer Owens, president of the Lakeshore Advantage economic development organization, spoke of Mead Johnson’s long-standing commitment to Zeeland.
“They are at a critical crossroads,” Owens said. “They must decide to modernize their facility or consider alternative sites out of state.”
Pike spoke of how Mead Johnson ramped up its production in Zeeland in 2022 when infant formula competitor Abbott had to halt production at its Sturgis plant because of contaminated formula that had been produced at that facility, resulting in a massive recall and a shortage of product.
“They worked around the clock in this recent infant formula shortage, working long hours to make certain that infants were fed,” Pike said. “Infants requiring infant formula as their sole source of nutrition during this time were fed directly from this factory.”
The 633 E. Main parcel has been a single-family residence for many years. Mead Johnson & Company acquired the 1.48-acre property on Dec. 30 of last year for $1.5 million, according to county property records.
The 605 E. Main parcel is currently occupied by Cityside Townhouses, two four-unit townhouses that were built in 2016. Mead Johnson purchased the 0.88-acre site May 15 for $2.95 million, according to city records.
Mead Johnson also recently acquired the former Bennett Wood Specialties property at 107 N. Carlton St. for $3.7 million. Unlike the two parcels the company is seeking to have rezoned, the Bennett Wood Specialties property is already zoned for industrial use.
The 633 E. Main site has been identified as eventually being rezoned for industrial use in the city’s master plan as far back as 2011, while the 605 E. Main property has been pegged as remaining residential in the future land use plan, Community Development Director Tim Maday said in a recent interview.
Several residents of east-side Zeeland neighborhoods, who have formed a group called Neighborhood First, continued to press their opposition to the Reckitt/Mead Johnson proposal. Neighborhood First organizer Ryan Gamby urged commissioners to go slow in considering the proposal.
“Please do not feel pressure to work on Mead Johnson’s timeline. Work on your own timeline,”
Gamby said. “This is an extremely impactful decision for the city of Zeeland, and you deserve the necessary time to make the right decision for our community.”
Ericka Humbert, who lives on Main across the street from the properties that are planned for expansion, spoke of the already-limited housing options for people who might like to live in Zeeland, and of the loss of affordable housing that would occur if the project proceeded.
“One of the parcels in question is a nearly brand-new flexible townhome association (Cityside Townhouses) that would be leaving eight renting families displaced in a city with little to no comparable alternates in terms of price or space,” Humbert said.
“If the justification to deviate from the master plan hinges upon the ability to navigate unexpected change within our city, the housing climate in Zeeland would suggest we shouldn’t be bending over backwards for industry, especially when it means sacrificing and compromising extremely valuable residential areas.”
Ryan Baas, who lives on Sanford Street, spoke in opposition to the rezoning, but said that if the project should proceed, he called for “robust greenspace and landscaping” on the Reckitt/Mead Johnson property and replacement of the playground in back of Bethel Christian Reformed Church that’s simply known as “the Blue Park.”
“It’s a valuable asset for our community and for families with young children like mine,” Baas said of the playground. “If this existing public playground were to be removed, it would be essential that Reckitt’s new plans included a public playground of equivalent or superior quality.”
Reckitt/Mead Johnson has proposed development of a new playground in partnership with Bethel CRC and the city to replace the current playground, although a location has not been determined. In addition, the company proposes the addition of a community park at the northeast corner of Main and Carlton and relocating a community garden plot for Bethel church members to continue to supply the community with fresh produce, Pike said.
The development plan also seeks to address community concerns of traffic, noise and odor. For example, on the issue of traffic, the company plans to reroute its onsite logistics traffic flow and will relocate overflow and all contractor parking onto Washington Avenue, away from Main and Fairview. Mead Johnson has scientists and engineers working on new technologies to eliminate odor from the plant, Griner said.
City officials were first approached by Mead Johnson about the company’s future plans last summer.
“Although they are currently conceptual, we are glad Mead Johnson’s potential plans have now been shared so the city can take time to discern how best to respond to official requests and site plans as they are filed,” City Manager Tim Klunder said in a prepared statement. “Planning Commission, City Council, and interested members of the public will have many opportunities to engage with this project through a multi-step process, beginning with the formal rezoning request.”
Mead Johnson is the city’s third largest taxpayer, behind Consumers Energy and Gentex Corporation. The company in 2024 paid $953,425 in local and county property taxes, including $305,869 in operating taxes to Zeeland Public Schools and $190,311 in operating taxes to the city, according to city tax records.
The rezoning of the two parcels must go through two votes of the Planning Commission to recommend approval, with final approval coming from the City Council.
Zeeland Record
The Zeeland Planning Commission will hold a public hearing tonight on a request by Reckitt/Mead Johnson Nutritionals to rezone two properties on East Main Avenue for industrial use as the company seeks to modernize its facilities.
The hearing will be at 6 p.m. in the main conference room of the Howard Miller Community Center, 14 S. Church St.
Mead Johnson & Company, LLC is asking the city to rezone the parcel at 633 E. Main Ave. from R-2 single-family and two-family residential to I-2 general industrial, and the parcel at 605 E. Main from R-3 two-family and multiple-family residential to I-2 general industrial.
Reckitt/Mead Johnson officials gave a presentation of their project concept to the Planning Commission last Thursday before a standing-room only crowd of more than 200 at the Howard Miller Community Center.
The company, which has about 500 employees, is proposing to invest $836 million into upgrading the Zeeland facility that has been in existence since 1924, representing “the largest-ever investment in our company’s 100-year history,” Mead Johnson legal director Justin Griner told commissioners.
Those in attendance for the presentation included opponents who say the project will have a negative impact on nearby residential neighborhoods as well as Reckitt/Mead Johnson employees, many of whom showed up wearing blue T-shirts with the company logo on them.
“Our assets are aging. We will not be able to use those assets forever,” said Art Pike, a site director for Mead Johnson, outlining the company’s rationale for its proposal. “We have to build new assets, because requirements change, regulatory requirements change. We have internal standards that we have to meet as well.”
Mead Johnson presented a preliminary site plan, calling for construction of about 350,000 square feet of new office and manufacturing space that includes a “flagship” building through which employees will enter.
“This investment in modernizing our operations in Zeeland reflects our commitment to sustained job creation and economic growth here in our local community, while also ensuring we maintain industry-leading quality standards and remain a trusted partner in pediatric nutrition,” company spokeswoman Elissa Dodge said.
Griner called the company’s Zeeland operations “critical to our domestic and global infant formula supply.”
“This facility has been a global hub for the production of our hypoallergenic infant formula Nutramigen, a specialized formula designed as a solution for babies with cow’s milk protein allergies,” Griner said.
Jennifer Owens, president of the Lakeshore Advantage economic development organization, spoke of Mead Johnson’s long-standing commitment to Zeeland.
“They are at a critical crossroads,” Owens said. “They must decide to modernize their facility or consider alternative sites out of state.”
Pike spoke of how Mead Johnson ramped up its production in Zeeland in 2022 when infant formula competitor Abbott had to halt production at its Sturgis plant because of contaminated formula that had been produced at that facility, resulting in a massive recall and a shortage of product.
“They worked around the clock in this recent infant formula shortage, working long hours to make certain that infants were fed,” Pike said. “Infants requiring infant formula as their sole source of nutrition during this time were fed directly from this factory.”
The 633 E. Main parcel has been a single-family residence for many years. Mead Johnson & Company acquired the 1.48-acre property on Dec. 30 of last year for $1.5 million, according to county property records.
The 605 E. Main parcel is currently occupied by Cityside Townhouses, two four-unit townhouses that were built in 2016. Mead Johnson purchased the 0.88-acre site May 15 for $2.95 million, according to city records.
Mead Johnson also recently acquired the former Bennett Wood Specialties property at 107 N. Carlton St. for $3.7 million. Unlike the two parcels the company is seeking to have rezoned, the Bennett Wood Specialties property is already zoned for industrial use.
The 633 E. Main site has been identified as eventually being rezoned for industrial use in the city’s master plan as far back as 2011, while the 605 E. Main property has been pegged as remaining residential in the future land use plan, Community Development Director Tim Maday said in a recent interview.
Several residents of east-side Zeeland neighborhoods, who have formed a group called Neighborhood First, continued to press their opposition to the Reckitt/Mead Johnson proposal. Neighborhood First organizer Ryan Gamby urged commissioners to go slow in considering the proposal.
“Please do not feel pressure to work on Mead Johnson’s timeline. Work on your own timeline,”
Gamby said. “This is an extremely impactful decision for the city of Zeeland, and you deserve the necessary time to make the right decision for our community.”
Ericka Humbert, who lives on Main across the street from the properties that are planned for expansion, spoke of the already-limited housing options for people who might like to live in Zeeland, and of the loss of affordable housing that would occur if the project proceeded.
“One of the parcels in question is a nearly brand-new flexible townhome association (Cityside Townhouses) that would be leaving eight renting families displaced in a city with little to no comparable alternates in terms of price or space,” Humbert said.
“If the justification to deviate from the master plan hinges upon the ability to navigate unexpected change within our city, the housing climate in Zeeland would suggest we shouldn’t be bending over backwards for industry, especially when it means sacrificing and compromising extremely valuable residential areas.”
Ryan Baas, who lives on Sanford Street, spoke in opposition to the rezoning, but said that if the project should proceed, he called for “robust greenspace and landscaping” on the Reckitt/Mead Johnson property and replacement of the playground in back of Bethel Christian Reformed Church that’s simply known as “the Blue Park.”
“It’s a valuable asset for our community and for families with young children like mine,” Baas said of the playground. “If this existing public playground were to be removed, it would be essential that Reckitt’s new plans included a public playground of equivalent or superior quality.”
Reckitt/Mead Johnson has proposed development of a new playground in partnership with Bethel CRC and the city to replace the current playground, although a location has not been determined. In addition, the company proposes the addition of a community park at the northeast corner of Main and Carlton and relocating a community garden plot for Bethel church members to continue to supply the community with fresh produce, Pike said.
The development plan also seeks to address community concerns of traffic, noise and odor. For example, on the issue of traffic, the company plans to reroute its onsite logistics traffic flow and will relocate overflow and all contractor parking onto Washington Avenue, away from Main and Fairview. Mead Johnson has scientists and engineers working on new technologies to eliminate odor from the plant, Griner said.
City officials were first approached by Mead Johnson about the company’s future plans last summer.
“Although they are currently conceptual, we are glad Mead Johnson’s potential plans have now been shared so the city can take time to discern how best to respond to official requests and site plans as they are filed,” City Manager Tim Klunder said in a prepared statement. “Planning Commission, City Council, and interested members of the public will have many opportunities to engage with this project through a multi-step process, beginning with the formal rezoning request.”
Mead Johnson is the city’s third largest taxpayer, behind Consumers Energy and Gentex Corporation. The company in 2024 paid $953,425 in local and county property taxes, including $305,869 in operating taxes to Zeeland Public Schools and $190,311 in operating taxes to the city, according to city tax records.
The rezoning of the two parcels must go through two votes of the Planning Commission to recommend approval, with final approval coming from the City Council.
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