Business & Tech

Group Forms to Oppose Nestle Expansion

The group, calling itself Solon Residents Against Rezoning, is speaking out against Issue 95, the ballot rezoning that would allow Nestle to build a new Research and Development building in Solon

A group calling itself Solon Residents Against Rezoning has formed to oppose plans to rezone land and build a new research and development building in Solon.

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The land slated for the new facility is currently zoned residential and must be changed to an industrial zoning before Nestle can build its facility.

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The group said that residents in Ward 5, where the project is located, are "vehemently opposed" to Nestle's plans, said Jacquelyn Calavitta, treasurer and spokeswoman for the group.

"We are not opposing Nestle expansion, but there are many other sites within Solon that are presently zoned commercial that would fulfill their mission, without the need for intrusion into residential areas or Metroparks properties," she said.

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Calavitta says the group is targeting voters in Ward 5, since the Solon Charter requires the ballot initiative to be approved by a majority of voters in that ward as well as citywide.

Nestle, Solon's largest employer, informed city officials in August that they were seeking a rezoning by ballot to build a new research facility on land it already owns at the corner of Cannon Road and Hawthorne Parkway.

The building will be approximately 120,000 to 150,000 square feet and have three stories.The company expects to hire 40 to 60 additional workers to help staff the building when its complete.

Solon city officials have largely supported the proposal, saying that having a company with the stature of Nestle expanding in town says only good things about the city's economic development.

But some residents have expressed a variety of concerns, such as traffic and noise.

Nestle officials have said that the move is a good one for the company and for Solon.

"We're very excited," O'Hearn said. "It's an honor to take a small center and grow it so that it has global prominence. And it's all right here in Solon."

The company has already held one open house to talk to voters about the project. A second open house is .


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