MUSKEGON, MI – Less than a year after it opened its doors, Pigeon Hill Brewing Company has announced plans for a $1 million expansion to its Muskegon-based operation.

Brewery owners signed a purchase agreement for the building located at 441 W. Western Ave. in downtown Muskegon. The building most recently housed the nightclub Club Envy.

According to co-owner Joel Kamp, initial plans are for the space to house an expanded production facility with upgraded equipment. It will also serve as a center for the brewery's growing distribution demands.

"It's more or less a strategic business move to expand our production and distribution at this point," Kamp said. "The building does have a lot of potential and it's a location that will help us in the future."

Brewery owners were approached last month by the Muskegon-based Signature Associates, who are selling the building, according to Kamp. Even though the ownership group wasn't looking to expand, they toured the space anyway and immediately saw the potential it had.

"The location," Kamp said when asked what attracted the group to the space. "I also really liked that it has tall ceilings. In our business, much of the equipment we put in is tall. There are also really nice barrel-shaped wooden beams; when we get this thing done, it's really going to get cool."

The building also has a loading dock, something their current building located at 500 W. Western does not have.

Kamp said it will be at least a year before any sort of production begins at the new location and that Thursday's announcement is just to inform the public of their plans. Permits and inspections from the city must be completed and specialty equipment needs to be ordered and delivered, a process that takes six to eight months, Kamp said.

Kamp added that the group had considered moving production to an industrial park outside of Muskegon, but realized the higher costs associated with remaining on Western Avenue would eventually be offset by the beneficial impact the expansion could bring to downtown Muskegon.

"This is just exciting," Kamp said. "It was always in our plans to expand. We're doing it earlier than we thought we would, but we couldn't pass up this opportunity."

Brandon Champion covers arts and entertainment, business, sports and weather for MLive Muskegon Chronicle. Email him at bchampio@mlive.com and follow him on Twitter @BrandonThaChamp.