City of Kalamazoo Is Buying & Leveling Brite Eyes Brewing Company

Last November, the owners of Bright Eyes Brewery Company in Kalamazoo had to make a difficult decision to close down their brewery and restaurant permanently.

The owners, Brian and Shelby, cited issues that they had with the city of Kalamazoo, basically turning that entire area into a massive construction project that completely destroyed their business income.

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They were pretty heartbroken after over 10 years of trying to make my dream come true, and nearly a decade of being in business came to a sad end. A Facebook post was made announcing the closure of Brite Eyes Brewing Co., explaining that 2024 was basically a death sentence to their business:

This year started out strong, but by early spring, the city had become one big road construction project with seemingly every convenient route to the brewery closed or detoured. Our ability to make the money we need to survive the slow winter has been compromised to the point we simply have no path forward.

They were originally hoping that they would be able to find a buyer to purchase the company from them to help with the outstanding debt that they had accrued, but now it seems like the city of Kalamazoo is buying the property, only to tear down the building and clear out the parking lot.

The building and the parking lot will be leveled to make way for the expanding water treatment plant that is located nearby. The Kalamazoo City Commission approved a $335,000 purchase agreement with Burdick Crosstown LLC on Monday for the purchase.

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