A new courthouse is in the works for Chilton County. After years of discussion, the Chilton County Commission made the announcement early this year, and crews began clearing 13 acres on Highway 145, south of the Jefferson State Community College Chilton-Clanton campus. At a special meeting in April, the commission unanimously approved construction plans for the project.
While remodeling the current courthouse, built in 1963, was initially considered, bringing the facility up to Americans with Disabilities Act compliance (ADA) would have required a total renovation that community leaders deemed too costly.
The $32 million turnkey project calls for a two-story building with a basement that will house all of the county offices and is intended to serve as a one-stop shop for county residents. The facility will be built on six acres with the other seven being reserved for future expansion.
The commission allocated $10 million towards funding the project, leaving them to finance the remaining $22 million. Construction is expected to take 14 to 24 months to complete.
Clanton Mayor Jeff Mims says plans are in place to build a new police station on the site when the old courthouse is demolished. The current police station operates in a former post office building that was built in 1935. The new facility will allow for upgrades and additional courtrooms.
Higgins Ferry Park in Clanton has had some additions and upgrades in the past year, including a wheelchair-accessible pavilion, a designated swimming area, a concrete seawall and steps to the boat launch. The John Trobaugh Pavilion also was renovated.
Thorsby relocated its city hall last year to provide more room for the city’s public utilities, planning and zoning departments and administration offices. The Thorsby Police Department moved into the old city hall location, and it is also home to city council meetings and the Thorsby Municipal Court.
The third annual Chilton County Strawberry Festival was held at Richard Wood Park in downtown Thorsby in April. This year’s event was the largest ever and its attractions included more than 150 vendors, food trucks, inflatables, a petting zoo and live music. The 2024 festival also introduced a Berry Blast 5k.
Up the road, the city of Jemison’s historic Main Street recently completed a revitalization project made possible by grant funds awarded by the Alabama Department of Transportation’s Transportation Alternatives Program. The project involved replacing all the sidewalks, adding railings and making them ADA compliant; repainting the parking lot; adding new trees and landscaping; and installing light fixtures.
In support of the project, the Jemison City Council approved a new event planning committee in February. The committee is tasked with scheduling events throughout the year in the newly renovated Main Street area. The commission got things up and running right away with Jemison Cowboy Day and a Bike Night in April. Food Truck Friday, which will continue every third Friday of the month during the summer, kicked off in May.
Alabama Mineral Springs LLC opened its new $6 million bottling facility near Jemison. The facility is capable of bottling 5,000 servings of water per hour and producing 30,500 cases of water per week. Alabama Mineral Springs is being distributed by Piggly Wiggly, and the company plans to expand to other retailers in Alabama, as well as to Mississippi and the Florida panhandle.
In February, the Alabama Department of Transportation announced the kick-off of its plans to upgrade parts of U.S. Highway 31 in Chilton County, including resurfacing, adding two feet of safety widening and installing a guardrail and new traffic striping from the intersection of Inverness Drive in Clanton to the intersection of Collins Street in Thorsby. The highway also will be reconfigured from four lanes down to three lanes from just north of Cherokee Road to Medical Center Drive. The result will be one through-lane for north- and southbound traffic and a continuous left-turn lane to improve traffic conditions along the route. Dunn Construction Co. secured the 7.1-mile project at $4.52 million. It is expected to take approximately six months.
Central Alabama Electric Cooperative announced in April that it will extend high-speed internet service to Chilton County, impacting more than 6,000 homes and businesses over the next two years. The expansion, which will also impact Autauga, Coosa and Elmore counties, is made possible by $23 million in state funding.
Career tech and creating pathways for students to enter local industries is a major focus of the Chilton County School System.
This spring, the State Department of Education awarded Verbena High School $50,000 to expand the career tech lessons offered through the school’s family and consumer science program for middle school students. A portion of the funds support students’ use of a virtual program that allows them to explore 50 different careers.
Since 2023, Jefferson State Community College has been partnering with school systems around the state, including LeCroy Career Technical Center in Clanton, as part of the Alabama Community College System’s Schools for Success rapid workforce training program. This year, 88 high school students from LeCroy participated in free Skid Steer training and fiber optics classes.
Last July, LeCroy completed the first year of its six-week summer construction program. Participating students were paid for each day they attended from a $100,000 donation by Mark McKinnon of McKinnon Automotive, and the program concluded with a job fair.
This article appears in the August 2024 issue of Business Alabama.
