Jefferson County just might have it all.
It has a land area of more than 1,100 square miles in north central Alabama. The Black Warrior and Cahaba rivers and rail lines and interstates 65, 20, 59, and Highway 78 run through its terrain.
And, combined with the Birmingham-Shuttlesworth International Airport, all of the rivers and rail lines and interstates work together to buoy trade and tourism, boost connectivity, support supply chains and make Jefferson County’s economy hum.
Manufacturing helped build up Jefferson County in the years after its founding in 1819.
Today, manufacturing remains a mainstay of the county’s economy, with plants forging metals, steel and other products. The manufacturing companies in Jefferson County include names like O’Neal Steel, McWane, Coca-Cola Bottling Co. United and the snack company J.M. Smucker.
“We’ve always had a strong manufacturing presence here,” says Jeff Traywick, Jefferson County’s economic development adviser. “The recruitment of companies that create high-wage jobs, that move the needle for us in terms of manufacturing wages and the number of folks that are employed in manufacturing, is really important.
“If you look at the data, just over the past five years, we’ve seen our average manufacturing wage go from $65,000 a year to $86,000 a year,” he says.
Those gains are significant, offering opportunities for people across the educational spectrum.
And yet, Jefferson County these days is blessed with a diverse mix of industries, from bioscience, health care, higher education and scientific research to retail, financial and insurance, hospitality, tourism and high tech.
As a matter of fact, CBRE, a global commercial real estate services firm, recently ranked Birmingham at No. 18 on a list of emerging markets in the nation for tech talent.
Jefferson County’s talented workforce is fueled by several universities like the University of Alabama at Birmingham, liberal arts colleges and community colleges.
Jefferson State Community College and Lawson State Community College, for example, are preparing students for careers in areas such as manufacturing as well as business management, construction and building science, computer information systems technology, nursing, medical laboratory services, hospitality and the culinary arts.
Higher education ranks among the economic engines that is not only driving workforce development, but also job creation, research, innovation and new businesses and startups in the region.
Moreover, Jefferson County officials and mayors are encouraging new investments to prepare land and infrastructure for future employers. One of the most ambitious projects is the development of 1,100 acres just off I-65, Exit 275 near Gardendale and Mt. Olive, to establish the Jefferson Metropolitan or JeffMet North Industrial Park.
“We’re in the process now of putting together a request for proposal for engineering work and master planning for the park,” says Traywick. “We’re also working with Birmingham Water Works to do some utility upgrades in the area to ensure that we’ve got adequate utilities.”
Once complete, JeffMet North is expected to create an estimated 4,700 jobs.
Jefferson County also is seeing investments from both established brands and cutting-edge companies. Coca-Cola Bottling Company United Inc., for example, is building a $330 million facility in Birmingham. Construction giant Brasfield & Gorrie recently expanded its headquarters in Birmingham. And last year, J.M. Smucker Co. opened its $1.1 billion, 900,000-square-foot facility in McCalla, in west Jefferson County.
Jefferson County’s other big economic driver is tourism. The county’s many attractions include the Civil Rights National Monument and sporting events, a Robert Trent Jones golf course, concerts, galleries and museums, nature trails and even the Alabama Adventure and Splash Adventure water and amusement park.
The Greater Birmingham Convention and Visitors Bureau reports that in 2024, tourism brought more than 4 million visitors to the region. Those visitors spent around $2.57 billion resulting in $301 million in tax revenue for Alabama and Jefferson County.
Tourism in Jefferson County was responsible for 51,887 jobs.
Gail Allyn Short is a Birmingham-based freelance contributor to Business Alabama.
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This section appears in the October 2025 issue of Business Alabama.
