Plan to redevelop former Georgia-Pacific mill to be presented to Green Bay City Council

The former Georgia Pacific mill site at 500 Day Street in Green Bay on April 15, 2025. PC: Fox 11 Online

GREEN BAY, WI (WTAQ-WLUK) – A shared vision to redevelop the former Georgia-Pacific Day Street paper mill will be presented to the City Council Tuesday night.

Georgia-Pacific closed the mill in 2023 after operating for 122 years. The city has been marketing the site, hoping to develop it into an extension of downtown, and utilize the riverfront land.

A Memorandum of Understanding with Scout Development – an arm of McDonald Companies – outlines what the city and the potential owner of the site would like to see happen with the property.

Scout Development LLC has an option to purchase the 44.27-acre property and is conducting due diligence before executing its option purchase, according to the city.

The non-binding MOU outlines three parameters for the site:

1. The bulk of the land south of Day Street shall be designated for downtown-oriented zoning and land uses (e.g., commercial, residential, recreational, and cultural), with the exception of specified areas that may be designated for industrial uses compatible with the City’s vision for downtown redevelopment, including the redevelopment of the WPS site across the East River.
2. Land north of Day Street may allow for light industrial uses compatible with adjacent properties and consistent with the City’s broader development goals.
3. Land within 50 feet of the Fox River and East River shall be reserved for public access, with the intent to preserve riverfront accessibility and connectivity. This may include the establishment of a public access easement to ensure permanent, unobstructed pedestrian and recreation access along the riverfront as redevelopment occurs.

If approved, Scout Development would be expected to submit more specific plans to the city by November.