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Zeeland planning commission asks city attorney to draft resolution to vacate North Division Street for Mead Johnson project
Summary
The Planning Commission voted April 16 to request a draft resolution recommending vacation of a portion of North Division Street so Mead Johnson can consolidate parcels and modernize its plant; the resolution will return to the Commission May 7 before any City Council action.
At its April 16 meeting, the Zeeland Planning Commission voted to ask the city attorney to prepare a draft resolution recommending the vacation of a portion of North Division Street to allow Mead Johnson & Company, LLC to consolidate contiguous parcels for a planned modernization of its manufacturing facility.
The motion, moved by Commissioner Daniel Klompmaker and supported by Commissioner Sheri Holstege, passed on a roll-call vote with five ayes (CJ Otteman, Sheri Holstege, Daniel Klompmaker, Rick VanDorp and Chairman Bill Elhart), no nays and four members absent. The vote authorized the City Attorney to draft a resolution for the Commission to consider at its May 7 meeting; any Commission approval would then be forwarded to City Council for final action.
Zoning Administrator Timothy Maday told the panel the application, dated Feb. 6, 2026, seeks to vacate a short, dead-end segment of North Division Street that Mead Johnson surrounds on three sides. Maday said the company requested the vacation to unify parcels acquired and rezoned in 2025 and to facilitate proposed site changes. Maday said the street is not a through street and that the city’s consulting traffic engineer indicated a traffic study was not warranted.
Allan Barron, representing Mead Johnson, described the company’s intent to remove existing curb cuts and access points along Main Avenue as part of the redevelopment and to install a continuous sidewalk and landscaping improvements along Main Avenue. "The intent is to eliminate all curb cuts and access points along Main Avenue," Barron said.
A nearby resident, Glen Kass of 210 W. McKinley, voiced support during public comment, saying the company owns adjacent properties and that the short street "no longer serves a public purpose." No public opposition was recorded at the hearing.
Maday and the commission emphasized that the Commission’s action on April 16 was procedural — directing the City Attorney to draft a resolution based on the Commission’s findings — and not the final vacating of the street. The draft resolution will be presented for consideration at the May 7 Planning Commission meeting; if the Commission approves it, the matter will move to City Council. Separately, staff said the Mead Johnson site plan application (submitted April 6) is under review and is scheduled for a special Planning Commission meeting on May 11, 2026.
The meeting packet referenced the City’s street-vacation procedures as outlined in a City Attorney memorandum dated July 13, 2011. The Planning Commission also approved its March 5, 2026 minutes, and staff noted additional items for future packets, including a comparative review of roadside food-stand regulations and an upcoming Zeeland Board of Appeals hearing.
