CertainTeed Ceilings announced on Thursday it was closing its Meridian location, but an official closing date was not included in the statement.

The ceiling tile manufacturing plant, which has operated as such under multiple owners for decades, is located across from the Meridian Regional Airport on Highway 11 in the Southern Industrial Park.

“CertainTeed Ceilings has made the difficult decision to close its facility in Meridian, Mississippi. This was a strategic business decision made after a careful analysis of all possible solutions across the CertainTeed Ceilings manufacturing network,” Carmen Bodden, vice president/general manager of CertainTeed Ceilings, said in a statement. “We understand the impact of this decision on the local community, and we respect the great work by all of our employees throughout the years.”

CertainTeed, a subsidiary of Saint-Gobain, has more than 5,000 employees and about 60 facilities throughout the United States and Canada.

“I understand that approximately 90 jobs will be lost, but those employees have been offered positions in other areas of the company,” Meridian Mayor Percy Bland said in a statement. “We are always disappointed when a company decides to leave Meridian. However, this is not a reflection on potential growth, and we are confident there will be other business opportunities.”  

After decades of different owners, CertainTeed acquired the Meridian building but closed it in 2009 due to economic woes. According to a May 2015 news release from the Mississippi Development Authority, the plant reopened officially after a “$24 million corporate investment” was made “to create 110 new jobs.”

In June 2013, Gov. Phil Bryant led a group of state, county and local officials in announcing the restarting of the CertainTeed plant in the Southern Industrial Park. At that Meridian news conference, Bryant said the state would contribute about $1.7 million to the project. He said that day that the plant would employ 110 people by 2016.

The MDA “provided assistance for building modifications and infrastructure improvements in preparation of the facility’s reopening. The city of Meridian and Lauderdale County assisted with the project, as well,” according to the 2015 news release said. 

Bryant again attended the reopening, calling it a great day for Meridian and Lauderdale County.