At its current state, Pell City Alabama is a small suburb on the eastern side of Birmingham, which is home to a large manufacturing/industrial industry. The city and the Alabama Department of Environmental Management have worked together to improve the cities economic viability and livability through the redevelopment of strategic brownfield sites. Government officials want to redevelop various brownfield sites throughout the city in hopes of sparking more economic development as well as removing blight from the city. The city has stressed the importance of maintaining Pell City’s small town feel while attracting new economic development.
Pell City has a long history with manufacturing and industrial industries being dominant economic drivers, and even with the loss of the textile industry the area has maintained major and attracted major manufacturing or industrial employers such as Benjamin & Moore or Eissmann Group Automotive. City officials are interested and actively seeking ways to diversify the economy in order to sustain the viability of Pell City, if major employers were to leave. Pell City is located between the cities of Atlanta, Birmingham, and Chattanooga. Interstate 20 runs on the northern side of Pell City, Highway 231 divides the city, and the Coosa River runs along the eastern and southern portions of the city limits.Overall, Pell City does not lack access to strong infrastructure or major hubs, which can be used to improve the continuous development. Due to its strategic location we believe Pell City can continue to grow if certain policies and plans are put into place to help redevelopment of strategic parcels in the city and ultimately making the city more competitive and attractive to future economic investment. Failure to plan accordingly for Pell City’s future could turn out to be devastating for the future development, attractiveness, and competitiveness for the city. Currently, Pell City is working to plan for the future, but the city is still missing valuable planning pieces such as neighborhood comprehensive plans, historical preservation plan, disaster plan, or a climate change action plan. Pell City has the potential to redevelop the old Avondale Mill Site and the save the Avondale Mill Village by creating a self-sufficient neighborhood. If the Avondale neighborhood is planned appropriately, its success can pay homage to the city’s historical roots, spark development in the downtown area, create a symbol/brand for the city, and it can be turned into a model for other small communities to follow. Overall, Pell city wants to be a small town that offers affordable living with economic opportunities, and ultimately a place people are proud of calling home. We believe that the redevelopment of the Avondale neighborhood will be the starting point to make that dream a reality when the right plans, policies, strategies are put into place by the city officials. |