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In the wake of Danimer’s bankruptcy, questions have been raised about the property Danimer was using for their Bainbridge expansion, which broke ground in 2021. The land was deeded to Danimer, then called Meredian Bioplastics, by the Development Authority of Bainbridge and Decatur County in November of 2021.

In a statement from Development Authority executive director Rick McCaskill, the Development Authority “reserves the right to reclaim the property if the project doesn’t start. Once the project starts and the company’s investment begins, that option goes away.”

McCaskill told the Post-Searchlight that the Development Authority has no plans to purchase the property back, as Danimer had already developed and invested so much into the facility. According to the Decatur County Tax Assessor, as of the writing of this article, the property is currently valued at $4,915,493, the majority of the valuation coming from the improvements/developments made.

“We hope somebody comes in and buys those assets and creates jobs,” McCaskill said in a statement to WALB.

In the official bankruptcy filing, Danimer has sought to manage the business and properties as “debtors in possession” (DIP) as they wind down business operations. This request would include “$1,000,000 in new money loans from lenders under the DIP Facility (the ‘DIP Lenders’) on an interim basis, and a total of potentially $3,000,000 of new money loans upon final approval, and $12,000,000 rolled-up from the existing Super Senior Uninsured Promissory Note upon entry of the final DIP order.”

In anticipation of Danimer’s expansion, local government began projects to improve wastewater treatment for the Downrange Industrial Park area. Two of these projects included a water tank, which is planned to be built inside the Downrange Industrial Park, and a municipal/drinking well, planned to be built on Pond Town Road to serve both West Bainbridge residents, and the Industrial Park, according to Bainbridge city manager Roy Oliver. Oliver also stated there were plans for two raw water wells, that would have served Danimer, but these were canceled.

“The city was ultimately awarded a $1.5M grant from the US Department HUD through Congressman Bishop’s office for the water tank,” Oliver said. “Those funds have been set aside and have not been exercised to date.” Those grant funds must be used by August of 2031.

Oliver added that Anovion Technologies signed its agreement with the Development Authority in December of last year. “Anovion will be a significant water user when they begin their process, the city will begin the construction of the tank and well when they finalize their plans and begin construction on their plant.”