Northeast Alabama Regional Megasite gets a big boost from key enhancement project
A new water tower will enhance the infrastructure at the Northeast Alabama Regional Megasite. (Goodwyn Mills Cawood/Norfolk Southern)
The Northeast Alabama Regional (NEAR) Megasite will now be more marketable to economic development projects, thanks to a critical piece of infrastructure that broke ground Tuesday.
A new elevated water tower is under construction thanks to a $3 million investment. It will allow Rainbow City to provide water and sewer to the 1,100-acre property, which is owned by Etowah County.
Norfolk Southern Railway is funding the project as part of the Growing Alabama tax credit program. Growing Alabama, which was renewed and enhanced this year by the Legislature as part of Gov. Kay Ivey’s Game Plan economic development package, allows for private sector funding of infrastructure and site development for public properties, in exchange for tax credits.
New water tower to enhance NEAR Megasite from Alabama News Center on Vimeo.
The 500,000-gallon water tower brings Norfolk Southern’s total Growing Alabama investment in the project to $8.7 million.
Officials from the Etowah County Commission, Gadsden-Etowah Industrial Development Authority, Alabama Department of Commerce, Alabama Power, Rainbow City, as well as other elected and community leaders joined Norfolk Southern representatives for Tuesday’s groundbreaking ceremony.
“This will be the solution to the site’s biggest challenge,” said Daniel Parker, senior Industrial Development manager with Norfolk Southern. “It’s kind of funny coming from the railroad side, walking into my management and telling them I want to build a water tower for $3 million.”
The new water tower will be the latest enhancement to the NEAR Megasite. (Michael Tomberlin / Alabama News Center)
Parker said it was the innovative approach of Growing Alabama, devised by the Alabama Department of Commerce and the Alabama Department of Revenue, that made it possible.
“Had they not had the foresight to create these kinds of programs here in Alabama that allow for site development, we would actually be on the back end,” Parker said. “All of the success Alabama has had has located a lot of industry here and sucked up a lot of the good sites. So now we’re having to go back and replenish those.”
The new water tower will be branded with the NEAR Megasite logo, serving as a giant “open for business” sign.
“The addition of the water tank is a critical piece of the infrastructure needed to solidify the NEAR Megasite as the premier industrial site in the South,” said David Hooks, Gadsden-Etowah Industrial Development Authority director. “We are extremely excited about the doors it opens for recruiting industry to Alabama and Etowah County specifically.”
A 500,000-gallon water tower will enable water and sewer infrastructure to service the NEAR Megasite. (Goodwyn Mills Cawood)
Other infrastructure enhancements at the site include Alabama Power’s relocation of transmission lines for the property. Alabama Power is also constructing a new 115 kV substation for the site.
“On the edge of this property we are in the process of constructing a transmission substation,” Terry Smiley, Alabama Power Eastern Division vice president, told those gathered for the groundbreaking. “It will enhance the reliability for our current customers and for our future customers. It’s an investment and it’s definitely worth it. Our state is worth it. The people that we serve are worth it. And it’s a privilege for all of us to work with all of you to make our region and our state the very best that it can be.”
Smiley said the NEAR Megasite is illustrative of how economic development is a team effort.
“Our company has been involved in economic development for over 100 years and it’s something that we take very seriously,” he said. “But we also know that the key is collaboration and groups working together. This I-59 corridor is prime for positive growth. The reason why we’re going to grow is we have these leaders that have come together.”
The NEAR Megasite is the largest tract of industrial property in north Alabama. It is in Attalla, situated between Birmingham, Huntsville, Chattanooga, and Atlanta. It has more than a mile of Norfolk Southern rail serving the property and two miles of frontage along Interstate 59.
“On behalf of the county commission, I’d like to say thank you to our partners who have made this day possible,” said Etowah County Commission President Craig Inzer. “This next phase of water and sewer construction at the NEAR Megasite will greatly improve the marketability of the 100-acre pad, putting us in the perfect position to land that next big industrial prospect.”
The NEAR Megasite project hopes to mirror the success of the South Alabama Megasite in Baldwin County, which also used Growing Alabama credits for CSX railroad and infrastructure improvements. The Baldwin County site was chosen by Novelis for a $2.5 billion aluminum mill that will create at least 1,000 jobs. The project broke ground last October.
Goodwyn Mills Cawood (GMC) architecture and engineering firm has worked closely with Etowah County for many years on planning and engineering for the NEAR site, in addition to serving as the engineer for the water tank project. Phoenix Fabricators & Erectors is constructing the water tank. Construction on the water tank is scheduled to be completed in 2024.
“During my time as a member of Congress I have seen a lot of new industrial developments,” U.S. Rep. Robert Aderholt said in a statement. “But this next phase at the NEAR Megasite, which will include a large capacity water tank, is different in just the sheer scale of the project. With well over 1,000 acres and a trained, available workforce, this development, the Megasite, will be transformative to not just Etowah County, but to the whole of the northeast Alabama region.
“This will pay dividends to future industry, the greater community, and to individuals who call this area home for at least the next half-century and probably long after,” Aderholt said.
