GREEN CHARTER TOWNSHIP — Reaction is pouring in from the Big Rapids area, including county commissioners, people who opposed the project, and Gotion.
Lori Brock is one of the people who has been vocal in their opposition to the Gotion project from the start.
“Thrilled. Absolutely thrilled. Literally started crying today. This has been a fight for two and a half years,” said Brock.
Brock said her horse farm is right across from the proposed Gotion plant.
She said a lot of people had concerns about the environmental impact and Gotion’s ties to the Chinese Communist Party.
“It wasn’t just me or one or two or three people. It was a huge community of people that came together. Everyone adamantly did not want Gotion. You’ve got no community support, no county support,” said Brock.
Mecosta County Commission chairman Chris Zimmerman released a statement saying, “I am pleased with the developments. Numerous polls showed that the residents of Mecosta County didn’t want Gotion. It was a 90/10 issue and thankfully we can put this chapter behind us.”
Brock said it’s not just the county commissioners who didn’t back the project.
“We had rallies at the farm to let people know what was going on. J.D. Vance came to our farm. Mike Rogers. There’s a whole lot of people that came to our farm to show support of the ‘No Gotion’ movement,” said Brock.
Gotion Vice President of North American operations Chuck Thelen denied our request for an interview but did share a statement.
“As we describe in our letter responding to the Michigan Strategic Fund’s notice, Gotion has not abandoned its project in Green Charter Township,” Thelen said. “Gotion, however, recognizes the significance of the hurdles that have been placed in front of this project by those who oppose it. And, it is true that the local municipalities’ actions are presenting a barrier to the project proceeding, and without their support, neither this project nor any other project could be completed. The current steps taken by the MSF are a direct result of those actions by the local municipalities. Nonetheless, we welcome a conversation with the state and the local governments regarding the future of this development.”
Brock said that’s not true.
“Our township never turned them down. They never gave them anything. They give them no environmental reports. They give them nothing to go with. They did not fulfill any of the obligations they were supposed to fulfill during the frame that they were supposed to fulfill them. So it’s not that they keep trying to blame our township. They give our township nothing,” said Brock.
Brock said this development signals that the state isn’t backing them anymore.
“We definitely feel vindicated. We definitely felt the tides returning six months ago. But today was a day for celebration when the state says the EV program is unplugged,” said Brock.