COMBINED LOCKS, WI (WLUK) – The formerly closed Appleton Coated paper mill in Combined Locks will now have hundreds of newly created jobs.
It was announced Monday that Midwest Paper Group is investing $30 million to reconfigure the mill and create 321 jobs.
Governor Walker was there for the announcement.
He says they must maintain 300 jobs to get the full $1.8 million dollars.
Outagamie County Executive Tom Nelson said he wonders why these efforts are being done in the middle of a gubernatorial campaign.
“I think it is all well and good. It is understandable that in an election year. a room full of politicians are trying to take credit for this.”
Mark Hogan, the CEO of Wisconsin Economic Development Corporation says the Walker administrations intentions are clear.
“Companies like Green Bay Packaging and now Midwest Paper, clearly is is about the workforce.”
The plan is for the new facility to produce packaging grade paper, which would be a change from the printing and writing grade paper it formerly produced.
Appleton Coated closed last year, which left around 600 people without a job. But in December 2017, after they were purchased months prior, they started the process of rehiring some former employees, which has them now employing around 310 workers.
