City of Plainwell Seeks Resident Input on Historic Mill Site Development

The City of Plainwell is seeking resident input on plans for the old mill site development. Here's how you can weigh in on the future of Plainwell.

When: Plainwell City Council Meeting on Monday, January 26, 2026 at 7:00 p.m.

Located along the Kalamazoo River sits the old mill site in Plainwell. Once home to the Michigan Paper Company, the Mill Historic District was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 2011. 

Michigan’s paper mills helped fuel a once-booming industry, but their legacy is a complicated one. While they played a major role in the state’s history, many now sit abandoned, contaminated, and in disrepair, with some designated as EPA Superfund sites after decades of pollution.

Nearby in Otsego, a team of Michigan State University students and staff, known as the Toxic Action Lab, is investigating how PFAs and other chemicals from paper mills may have leached into local wells, impacting the health of local residents.

Much work has gone into the old mill site in Plainwell, including the recent restoration of the old noon whistle, and now residents are being asked for input on what happens next. According to the City of Plainwell potential plans are already in the development stage:

I'm all for the redevelopment of this space as we've been staring at this old mill for decades. That is, as long as it's clean and safe to build. What would you like to see happen with the Mill Historic District?