Spotlight on Colbert & Lauderdale: Economic Engines

Technology, automotive, music heritage and tourism are among the economic industries calling the Shoals home

The Shoals Research Airpark speculative building offers 250,000 square feet of space zoned for heavy industrial activity.

Technology/Innovation/Entrepreneurship

The Shoals area has several programs that work to increase collaboration and partnerships to build a culture of entrepreneurship and innovation among students, budding entrepreneurs and existing business owners.

Those include the Shoals Alabama Launchpad, a competitive program that nurtures startup businesses. It has awarded thousands in grants. The Shoals Business Incubator, open since 1992, has helped more than 150 businesses and created more than 1,500 jobs. And Shoals Shift works to expand the area’s digital technology cluster and build a tech hub.

The Shoals Economic Development Authority’s Remote Shoals program, which offers remote workers the chance to receive up to $10,000 to relocate to the Shoals community, received funding through June 2025. It launched in 2019 and since then, the program has welcomed more than 130 remote workers, totaling more than 260 new citizens. These remote workers bring with them more than $13 million in annual payroll. To date, the initiative has had more than 3,000 applicants.

Another innovative program to boost economic development is the Shoals Music Makers program. This program, started two years ago, offers artists up to 30% of their budget back for choosing to record in the Shoals. So far, the program has brought in 31 artists and musicians, $240,000 and one Grammy.

Automotive/Advanced Manufacturing

The Shoals has a diverse manufacturing base and in recent years has grown in sectors such as automotive and metals. Those sectors are still highly sought after by local economic developers.

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The largest manufacturing employer in the Shoals is North American Lighting, which makes automotive lighting fixtures and recently expanded, followed by Constellium, which manufactures aluminum.

Other major employers represent wood and flooring products, paper and plastic products, caskets, fireworks, fertilizer and protein processing.

The Shoals Economic Development Authority owns all nine industrial parks in the area, a move that helps streamline and market the area. And SEDA ensures that speculative buildings are available for new and expanding industry.

From a half-cent sales tax, the Shoals Economic Development Fund offers incentives and other help to industry, industrial park improvements, spec buildings and more. It has helped new and existing companies with job creation as well through its Employment Growth Program.

The Florence-Lauderdale County Port Authority is a public port authority established as a special district of the city of Florence and Lauderdale County.

Florence-Lauderdale County Port Authority/Northwest Alabama Regional Airport

The Florence-Lauderdale County Port Authority (FLPA) is a public port authority established as a special district of the city of Florence and Lauderdale County. The FLPA is a 45-acre lease-hold port with various tenants carrying out the operations of the facility’s terminals. The FLPA location near the confluence of the Tennessee River and Tombigbee Waterway provides a direct link to the Gulf of Mexico. The port handles an average of 450,000 tons of cargo a year, particularly of goods such as corn, soybeans, grain sorghum, wheat, concrete sand, feldspar, granite fines, fertilizer, cotton seed, aluminum and silica. It has the capacity to handle a million tons a year.

Tenants of the FLPA include American Metal Chemical Corp., Alliance Sand, James Marine Inc., McDaniel Service LLC, Woodall Grain Co. and Tennessee Southern Railroad. Companies served by the port account for an $80 million payroll and about 2,500 jobs.

The FLPA recently completed a $1.9 million dredging project that will provide access to the port year-round. A 2024 earmark has been established for the renovation of the public dock in the amount of $3.4 million, which is warranted to keep the FLPA fully operational and to promote growth and development. 

Northwest Alabama Regional Airport in Muscle Shoals, owned by Lauderdale and Colbert counties, also is an economic driver. Recently, the Shoals Economic Development Authority announced its 2023 Product Development Plan. In addition to the 27,000-square-foot hangar for aircraft MRO development at the Northwest Alabama Regional Airport, this plan includes the construction of two speculative buildings. Construction is expected to be completed in 2024.

The airport also is planning to launch new service and do some terminal modifications, officials say.

Music Heritage/Tourism

The Shoals is home to the rich history of the Muscle Shoals Sound — with studios that have made history with their legendary recording — and SEDA has developed an incentive plan for those who wish to record or film in the area.

Under the program, approved recipients who record in Lauderdale or Colbert counties receive a reimbursement of up to 30% of their budget, which boosts economic development as well.

As to retail, the counties sit in a tri-state corridor, so retail is big business here. Many downtown districts are beefing up their efforts, too, and it has paid off.

Tourism is a major industry here. That’s due to not only the area’s rich music heritage but also the Helen Keller Festival, the W.C. Handy Music Festival, the Tuscumbia Depot, a Frank Lloyd Wright-designed home and an annual Trail of Tears commemoration, along with golf, tennis and sports tourism.

The area also is on the Tennessee River, leading to riverwalks, kayaking and canoeing sites, and more.

Health Care

Hospitals are among the largest employers in the county, and this sector continues to grow.

Patients are served by North Alabama Medical Center in Florence and its sister hospital, North Alabama Shoals Hospital in Muscle Shoals. Helen Keller Hospital is located in Sheffield.

Higher Education

The Shoals has three institutions of higher learning, and postsecondary education is a large economic driver. The schools and college are also very active in workforce development.

The University of North Alabama in Florence is one of the largest employers in Lauderdale County. Also in Lauderdale County is Heritage Christian University in Florence, a private school.

Likewise, in Colbert County, Northwest Shoals Community College is one of the county’s largest employers. The school has a campus in the Shoals and another in Phil Campbell.

Business Briefs

August 2024: Dirt is moving on the $50 million West Village project in Florence, touted as the first walkable neighborhood in the Shoals, with a variety of housing options, neighborhood shops, parks and public gathering spaces. It is being planned for the former Eliza Coffee Memorial Hospital site.

July 2024: Colbert County Tourism recently was named Organization of the Year by Alabama State Tourism. Visitors spent more than $115 million on tourism, and, over the past five years, lodging revenue has doubled.

July 2024: A new Veterans Affairs clinic in Sheffield is expected to open later this year. It will double the space for treating veterans and will add more services, such as optometry and audiology, allowing veterans to receive care at home instead of traveling to other cities.

June 2024: Ground is broken for the Bank Independent Stadium at the University of North Alabama. The $65 million cost will be funded by a capital campaign that has already raised $25 million, UNA athletics department reserved funds and construction loans.

June 2024: Forbes names Bank Independent, based in the Shoals, among America’s Best-In-State Banks for 2024 in its annual nationwide list. The bank was ranked No. 1 in the state.

June 2024: Additional funding through July 2025 is approved for the Shoals EDA’s Remote Shoals program, which offers remote workers the chance to receive up to $10,000 to relocate to the Shoals communities.

June 2024: The second cohort of the Code AL completes the course. The program, launched in 2023, came out of a partnership with the Shoals EDA, the University of North Alabama’s Center for Learning and Professional Development and the TVA’s Economic Development arm. Students who complete this boot camp receive a fundamental understanding of programming concepts and get hands-on experience with two popular programming languages.

June 2024: Voters overwhelmingly approve a 5-mill property tax renewal to benefit Tuscumbia city schools. The vote renews the tax for 30 more years.

May 2024: The city of Muscle Shoals announces plans for a 66-acre, $65 million sportsplex and event center that will adjoin a retail development. The sportsplex will have indoor and outdoor sports facilities, an amphitheater-style music venue and more. It is planned for the intersection of U.S. highways 72 and 43.

May 2024: Colbert County officials hope to finish design and plans for a new jail, with bids accepted by the end of August or early September. Officials have been told the new jail could be ready by January 2026.

April 2024: Ground is broken for the Lauderdale County Schools Innovation Center, to be built on Highway 72 as part of the agricultural center site. It will replace the system’s aging career tech building and will not only accommodate more students, but also host night classes for adults who want to obtain career certificates. It is set to open for the 2026-27 school year.

March 2024: The Shoals Music Makers program continues to recruit new music production to the Shoals area. This program, started two years ago, offers artists a refund of up to 30% of their budget for recording in the Shoals. So far, the program has brought in 31 artists and musicians, $240,000 and one Grammy.

February 2024: The Shoals EDA’s Florence AdvantageSite receives state funds through the Site Evaluation and Economic Development Strategy Act.

January 2024:  AE Industrial Partners, a private equity firm specializing in aerospace, national security and industrial services, announces that its affiliate has acquired a 2 million-square-foot, 638-acre industrial facility, originally built for rail car manufacturing, from the Retirement Systems of Alabama. AEI plans to renovate the facility to serve as an aerospace center of excellence anchored in the Shoals area.

November 2023: Ground is broken for the Lauderdale County Workforce Development Center, part of the Lauderdale County Agricultural Center project. The $26 million project should be completed within two years, providing job training and geared toward upper-level education. TVA has donated $8 million for equipment and training.

November 2023: Bank Independent, founded in Colbert County more than 75 years ago, breaks ground on a new operations center in Muscle Shoals, a four-story, 100,000-square-foot complex on 50 acres. It should be complete in late 2025.

September 2023: The Shoals EDA announces its 2023 Product Development Plan. In addition to the 27,000-plus-square-foot hangar for aircraft MRO development at the Northwest Alabama Regional Airport, this plan includes the construction of two speculative buildings. Construction is expected to be completed in 2024.

June 2023: Southwire announces an expansion of its Florence manufacturing facility, with plans to increase production capacity by 30% and create some 120 jobs.

This article appears in the October 2024 issue of Business Alabama.

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