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MANCELONA - DURA Automotive officially announced the closure of its Mancelona facility Monday. More than 300 people are currently employed there.

Information from DURA spokesperson Shawn Brumbaugh said no timeline for the closure in Mancelona has been finalized but the "phased" process is expected to take several months and will be completed by the end of 2008.

DURA issued a preliminary recommendation to close at the end of February, but they were engaging in discussions with the union before making any final decisions.

"DURA has regretfully announced to employees the decision to cease all operations and close the Mancelona site," said a statement from Theresa Skotak, DURA's vice president and chief administrative officer Monday. "While several factors were considered, a critical part of the decision was the inability for the company and the union to reach an agreement that would result in an economically-viable business capable of remaining competitive in an extremely aggressive global supplier landscape."

The closure is part of the company's restructuring plan to help climb its way out ofÊ bankruptcy, which DURA filed in September 2006. The company is moving some DURA operations into "best-in-cost" locations like Mexico and Eastern Europe. This is the fourteenth DURA plant closure worldwide as a result of the restructuring, from Barcelona, Spain to Hannibal North, Missouri (announced Friday).

Village President Bob Wilcox said the Mancelona plant manager called him to go over the closing, but there isn't much action the village can take.

"There's zero that the village can do, except sit on the sidelines and show support to employees of the plant," Wilcox said.

The future of the soon-to-be vacant facility is unkown. DURA announced in April 2007 that it would market the sale of the latch and hinge business, but stopped proactively trying to sell in November. According to DURA, they are developing a "move forward strategy" for the plant.

Wilcox said the company will likely move the machinery out and look to sell that facility.

"We would hope that somebody would be interested right away," he said. "We drew up an IDD (Industrial Development District) around the property. We would entertain anything we can to bring in another plant or maintain the DURA plant."

Though the fate of DURA Automotive in Mancelona has been rocky since the company declared bankruptcy, the official closure still does not sit easy with many locals.

"Even though we were prepared a little bit at the village office, when you get the phone call it still hurts," Wilcox said. "Something that's been here my whole life - to see it be gone is still quite a shock."

Hadley Robinson can be reached at hrobinson@michigannewspapers.com or by calling 231-533-8523.