COFFEE COUNTY
In Elba, the county seat, the Chamber of Commerce and Main Street Elba have been busy welcoming a slew of new businesses, including DJ’s Peanut Patch RV Park, Lee Milliner State Farm Insurance Agency, All In Credit Union, Kaye Ellis Realty, Elba Florist and Gifts and Ms. Linda’s Restaurant.
Kansas-based Sunbelt Solomon, one of the world’s largest providers of commercial and industrial electrical distribution equipment, opened a 23,000-square-foot service center in Elba in October 2023. The company invested a total of $5 million in the new facility.
And new businesses aren’t the only thing the Chamber has to celebrate. After a fire destroyed the historic Chamber of Commerce building in 2022, the organization has settled into a new downtown location.
Elba’s annual Let Freedom Ring Fourth of July celebration and Pumpkins on the Square both saw record attendance in 2024 with more than 4,000 attendees.
The city of Enterprise received a $5.7 million grant through Alabama’s Site Evaluation and Economic Development Strategy (SEEDS) program that will support purchasing nearly 300 acres to expand and develop industry-ready sites at the Enterprise Commerce Park.
The Alabama Department of Veterans Affairs opened the Command Sgt. Bennie G. Adkins Veterans Home in Enterprise. The 182,000-square-foot skilled nursing facility can house 174 residents and features private rooms and amenities that include a sports bar, library, chapel and a fleet of buses.
Enterprise recently celebrated the grand opening of its new Recreation and Aquatics Center. The 70,000-square-foot facility is the largest municipal facility in the city and features a new gymnasium, a completely renovated Moose Hope Gym, fitness equipment and free weights, program space, locker rooms, concessions and a pool.
The City of Enterprise and Enterprise State Community College broke ground on a $10 million workforce development center in August 2024. The new facility will house the college’s mechatronics, automotive and welding programs. Construction is expected to be complete by fall 2025.
ESCC’s new 50,000-square-foot Performing Arts Center is under construction and expected to be completed in September. It will feature a 600-seat theater and will house the school’s Fine Arts Division.
A $14.8 million sports facility is in the works for Enterprise High School. The facility will include a 100-yard practice field, an all-new weight room, a nutrition room, plunge pool, boys’ and girls’ locker rooms and training rooms. It is expected to be complete by fall 2025.
The Coffee County School System celebrated the opening of the New Brockton Middle School building in August 2023.
DALE COUNTY
Dale County celebrated its bicentennial in 2024. Its two largest cities, Ozark and Daleville, form the borders of Fort Novosel, one of the largest military installations in the state and the home of Army Aviation.
Gov. Kay Ivey awarded a $180,000 Community Development Block Grant to Dale County that will be used to provide infrastructure for Averitt Express, a freight transportation company, to relocate its service center and warehouse. The company plans a total investment of $15 million at its new location, including construction of a 21,200-square-foot facility on Dale County Road just off U.S. Highway 231. The CDBG funds will be used to resurface and make improvements to Dale County Road to improve access to the new facility. Dale County also has pledged $36,000 in local funds to support the project. The new hub is expected to bring 20 new jobs to the area.
Dale County Schools consistently ranks as one of the state’s top-performing county school systems and earned an “A” for the 2023-2024 school year on its annual report card from the State Department of Education.
The Bridge Academy kicked off its second full school year in August 2024. The Ozark-based career center, a collaboration between the Dale County Board of Education and several community and technical colleges and local businesses, serves students from three Dale County high schools through seven dual enrollment career pathway programs. After just two years, the academy is already expanding and broke ground in September on a nearly $1 million project that will add additional lab space.
After a multi-year process, Ozark, the county seat, was designated an Alabama Community of Excellence (ACE) in 2024. ACE recognition focuses on communities with populations between 2,000 and 18,000 and includes technical assistance to support the community’s future strategic planning initiatives.
Last summer, the city revived the Ozark 101 leadership program, a series of free classes that address a variety of topics ranging from the budgets and day-to-day operations of city departments to environmental regulations and street ratings.
Ag-tech startup company SetaTech, a graduate of HudsonAlpha’s Gener8tor program, announced it will operate a manufacturing site in Ozark. The company turns nutrients from natural hair and chicken feathers into eco-friendly products that can be used in agriculture, as deer deterrents and for cleaning up oil spills.
Ozark Corporate Park received $221,000 in funding for improvements through Growing Alabama with Pea River Electric Cooperative as the tax credit donor. The funds were used for clearing and re-seeding the property and adding lighting and signage. Work wrapped up in November 2024.
The Alabama Aviation College, a unit of Enterprise State Community College, has a campus in Ozark that offers career training in automation and manufacturing through its Mechatronics program.
The college plays a major role in supporting industry in the area and has partnerships with most local school systems to train high school students for high-demand careers through its aviation maintenance technician, avionics and mechatronics programs. ACC also maintains strong ties with the region’s industrial leaders, including M1 Support Services at Fort Novosel, CAE USA, Arista, McDermott Aviation in Andalusia and Commercial Jet.
AAC recently celebrated the reopening of the James Douglas Brown Sr. Building after a $5 million renovation that included three updated aviation classrooms/labs, an updated CDL classroom and an aviation hangar.
Andrews Place, a 28-unit apartment complex, opened next to the Alabama Aviation College in August 2024.
Plans to revitalize the Ozark Civic Center that include lighting and mechanical upgrades and sound and stage improvements were finalized in November 2024. The project, valued at more than $1.2 million, is a partnership between the City of Ozark and Alabama Power.
Ozark opened a new 8-court pickleball complex in 2023 and recently announced plans to make upgrades to the 42-year-old Steagall Park that include rebuilding eight tennis/pickleball courts and adding fencing, benches and bleachers and other park amenities. The $446,462 project is made possible by funds from the federal Land and Water Conservation Fund. This announcement came on the heels of the completion of ADA upgrades to the park’s KidZone.
Last year, Ozark’s historic Holman House opened a military museum that honors the legacy of Chief Warrant Officer Michael J. Novosel, the namesake of Fort Novosel, and the legacy of the Warrant Officer Corps.
Ozark City Schools remain focused on supporting students through Career Technical Education programs. Students are introduced to 16 career clusters in middle school and in high school can start taking career electives. Topics include agriculture, hospitality and tourism, manufacturing, finance and public safety. The program expanded last summer when D.A. Smith Middle School opened a new Career Exploration Center after nearly $1 million in renovations.
Ozark City Schools and Troy University signed an agreement that introduces an Accelerated Dual Enrollment Program for high school students who are interested in a career in education.
Wallace Community College received a $2.9 million grant from the Alabama Community College System as part of the Alabama Centers for Rural Healthcare Opportunity legislative appropriation to establish the Wiregrass Center for Rural Health Care Opportunities in Ozark. The center will address a growing need for licensed practical nurses, nursing assistants and mental health technicians in the greater Dale County area by serving as a career and workforce development hub for these high-demand healthcare professions.
The Boys & Girls Club of Southeast Alabama announced plans for a new teen center to be located in the former Ozark Board of Education building. The center, known as The Club, will focus on workforce development and include a podcast studio, music studio and driving simulator. It is expected to open this summer.
Carroll High School’s Matthew Stadium is undergoing renovations, including expanding passive seating and adding new bathroom facilities and a new two-story press box. The stadium is set to reopen for fall 2025.
The city of Daleville has partnered with the Ozark-Dale County Economic Development Corp. (OEDC) to transform the 253-acre Hanchey Field Road industrial park. In February 2024, the OEDC applied for funding through the Alabama SEEDS Act, and the city of Daleville approved the match requirement for SEEDS Act funding. Initial plans include clearing a portion of the property and extending water lines to make the site more visible and shovel-ready.
In June 2024, All In Credit Union broke ground on a 138,000-square-foot expansion of its operations center in Daleville. The expansion will more than triple the current facility’s size.
GENEVA COUNTY
The Geneva County Commission received $1 million in state funds for a new multipurpose agricultural complex. The approximately 50,000-square-foot Ag-Plex will be built on the property of the current Geneva County Farm Center and will be used by local schools, the Cattlemen’s Association, the Auburn Extension office and for agricultural events. The facility is expected to be completed this fall.
Last summer, rural internet provider Spectrum launched Spectrum Internet, Mobile, TV and Voice services to more than 2,400 homes and small businesses in the county and surrounding areas. The company’s newly constructed fiber-optic buildout is part of a roughly $5 billion Rural Digital Opportunity Fund (RDOF) investment in unserved rural communities and is partly offset by $1.2 billion in the Federal Communications Commission’s RDOF auction.
Also last summer, the Alabama Department of Transportation began a resurfacing project on SR-52 in Geneva County. ALDOT awarded Wiregrass Construction Co. in Dothan $2.8 million to complete the project, which will include widening the shoulder and resurfacing from Lime Street in Samson to SR-196 in Geneva. It is scheduled to be completed this fall.
The county seat, Geneva, has a new city hall. The facility includes a municipal courtroom that is three times bigger than the old one and will hold city council meetings in addition to court proceedings. The Geneva Police Department will occupy the former city hall building.
Geneva also celebrated the opening of a new splash pad in May 2024. It is the first phase of a project that plans to bring an amphitheater, playground, pavilions, walking trails and Wi-Fi to downtown Geneva.
The Geneva High School football team started its 2024 season with new facilities, including a new weight room, locker room and offices for the coaches.
The Geneva County School System consists of three high schools, three middle schools and three elementary schools located in Hartford, Slocomb and Samson. Geneva County Schools outscored every other county school district in the state on its 2023-2024 report card with an overall score of 93. Geneva County Schools and Geneva City Schools tied as top-scoring districts in the area.
This article appears in the March 2025 issue of Business Alabama.
