COLDWATER, MI (WTVB) – The scope of economic benefits coming to Coldwater and Branch County with the 2017 opening of the Clemens Food Group pork production facility has been further documented in a Friday news release from the Michigan Department of Transportation. MDOT announced yesterday it’s awarded a $2.6 million grant to support the 750 new jobs that will become available as Clemens ramps up production at the plant. MDOT says its grant will leverage $255 million in private investment, at a private/public investment ratio of more than 98:1.
The Pennsylvania-based Clemens Food Group is an industry leader in the processing of a variety of pork products and is partnering with a number of family-owned farms in Michigan and Ohio to produce pork. Several sites in both states were considered before deciding to construct a fresh pork harvest facility in Coldwater. Clemens will invest approximately $255 million in new buildings and equipment for the new jobs with the facility now under construction southeast of the I-69 interchange at Jonesville Road, north of Coldwater. Transportation was a key component in the selection of this site, and MDOT will repave the I-69 ramps at Jonesville Road. Several other upgrades and additions to the nearby local road system also are planned to accommodate Clemens’ new facility.
The overall cost of the road projects is $3.3 million. In addition to the MDOT grant, the city of Coldwater is providing $635,000 while the MDOT Southwest Region will invest $72,000.
