TAPPING A MARKET: New brewery operation sets sights on former Mat Maid plant in Palmer

PALMER — Two longtime beer industry pros hope to turn part of downtown Palmer into an industrial brewing operation.

If plans came to fruition, the recently minted Matanuska Brewing would open the doors on an industrial microbrew facility on a portion of the former Matanuska Maid dairy. The brewery would create between five and 10 jobs, and could possibly add more jobs depending on the success of its brand, according to one of the partners.

According to a public notice, the Division of Agriculture plans to sell the dairy’s blow mold manufacturing facility for $825,000. Proceeds from the sale will go into the Agricultural Revolving Loan Fund, which offers loans for capital investments to Alaskan farmers, according to loan officer Amanda Swanson.

Matanuska Brewing was founded in April, and serves as a joint venture between Kevin Burton, the head brewer for Anchorage’s Glacier Brewhouse, and Matthew Tomter, the owner of both the Palmer City Ale House and the Eagle River Ale House, according to documents filed with the Department of Commerce, Community and Economic Development.

Burton said the concept behind Matanuska Brewing was for a small industrial brewery. The partners are still in the preliminary stages, Burton said.

“We have products together, and we’re in the process of getting financing,” he said.

The concept would be on a larger scale than numerous microbrewery outfits that have opened in the Mat-Su Borough in recent years, including Arkose Brewing, Bear Paw River Brewing, Bleeding Heart Brewery, Denali Brewing Co. and Last Frontier Brewing, Burton said. If all goes as planned, Tomter and Burton could open the brewery next year, Burton said.

The plan was to repurpose the existing building to their own purposes, including the former on-site grain elevator, which Tomter and Burton hope to emblazon with their company’s logo.

The partners are excited about the property’s possibilities, Burton said.

“We like Palmer,” he said. “That particular building has a lot of history. It’s just a great location.”

The Board of Agriculture voted unanimously to approve the sale during a special meeting on May 27, Swanson said. The Division of Agriculture has owned the property since 1985, and the property — appraised at about $400,000 last year, with an outstanding tax balance of $6,198.37, according to borough property records — has been available for over-the-counter sale since 2009, Swanson said.

The only other offer on the property came in 2012, when the City of Palmer offered to buy it, but the offer fell through because of a lack of funding, according to board of agriculture minutes. The parcel in question is located at the north end of the property, facing Dogwood Avenue between South Valley Way and South Denali Street, according to borough property records.

The board ultimately decided the sale of the property would better serve the division than to hold on to it, Swanson said.

“The board decided it would be more beneficial to get those funds put back into the RLF for funding,” she said.

Board minutes also make reference to environmental issues with the property. A best interest finding says selling the building will eliminate the need to pay property taxes and maintenance costs.

“Environmental concerns with the property have greatly hampered the ability of the board to find a buyer for the property,” the board’s finding reads in part.

A 180-day due diligence window for the new owners closes on Nov. 23, according to the sale documents.

Contact reporter Brian O’Connor at 352-2270, brian.oconnor@frontiersman.com, or on Twitter @reporterbriano.