After the City of Muskegon sold 20 acres of land to a company that conducts animal testing, animal rights activists protested the transaction at the commissioner's meeting Tuesday evening.
One week ago, the Muskegon City Commission sold the former West Shoreline Correctional Facility site to Northern Biomedical Research, a company that conducts testing on various animals for $40 million.
City officials say, the expansion of Northern Biomedical will bring 70 high paying jobs to Muskegon and hundreds of thousands of dollars in property taxes with it.
However, since then, a citizen-led Facebook group in opposition to the sale has sprung up who are demanding that the city reconsider its decision.
Hannah Hilborn is the group’s founder and spokesperson. She told city officials Monday evening, it’s not just the ethical question surrounding animal testing. But also, whether typical Muskegon residents will be qualified to fill those 70-high-paying jobs.
“The average salary for these jobs is $80,000,” Hilborn said. “70 jobs is not a big enough number to be a source of pride, and certainly not if the jobs do not much the work force of Muskegon. You are simply happy about the income tax-dollar revenue and do not care that this facility is doing nothing for the betterment of evertdat Muskegon citizens.”
At Monday’s Work Session Meeting, both City Manager Frank Peterson and new Mayor Ken Johnson defended Northern Biomedical Research, noting that the US Food and Drug Administration requires animal testing on medical products before testing can be done on humans, and that the medical advancements that could come out of the company outweigh the concerns surrounding the practice.
