Summit breaking ground on expansion

The Summit Brewing Company is kicking off a $6-million expansion of its St. Paul brewery on Friday.

Company officials say after the expansion is done next summer, the company will be able to produce nearly a quarter of a million barrels of beer per year.

Summit founder and CEO Mark Stutrud says the current facility has reached its maximum capacity. Even though the local craft beer market is highly competitive, he said that now is a good time to expand the company's production.

"Our debt level is very low today. So for us to take on additional debt and for the volume of sales that we're in, this is just a great move for us. And it's very timely," he said.

"We designed and built this brewery from the ground up. We moved in December of 1998. We've always had a certain amount of green space that was designated as our expansion area to increase the capacity of our cellars," Stutrud said.

St. Paul Mayor Chris Coleman is scheduled to appear at the groundbreaking ceremony, which will also include food, live music and Summit beer.

Summit has been in business for 26 years. Stutrud says the company has been planning for the expansion for over a decade.