May 2022 Issue

Keeping you informed and inspired.

May 2022

VOLUME 5 • ISSUE 5

TECHNOLOGY

Huntsville’s Adtran Set to Bring 10 Gigabit Broadband Speeds to Tennessee

COVER STORY

The Huntsville based Adtran Inc. recently announced that the Twin Lakes Telephone Cooperative Corporation selected the Adtran 10G fiber access platform to bring fiber broadband connections with 10G speed across the rural Tennessee area.

By Noah Logan - Page 5

See story on page 12

DEVELOPMENT

A Closer Look at the Redstone Gateway Development

In a recent interview with James Lomax, Vice President of Assessment Management and Leasing at Corporate Office Properties Trust, the Huntsville Business Journal was able to take a deeper dive into one of Huntsville’s largest current developments: the Redstone Gateway.

By Gus Wintzell - Page 18

ADDITIONAL STORIES • Sit Down with Success: Stewart Money Brings Geek Chic to Brewing

By Dawn Suiter • Page 3

• Teledyne Brown Engineering to Blaze New Trails with Nissan, Sierra Space

By Dawn Suiter • Page 6

• Making History: Huntsville Breaks Ground on New City Hall

By Dawn Suiter • Page 14

Online

Huntsvillebusinessjournal.com

Twitter

@HsvBizJournal

LinkedIn

www.linkedin.com/company/huntsville-business-journal/

Facebook

www.facebook.com/huntsvillebusinessjournal

HUNTSVILLE

BUSINESS JOURNAL Vol 5, Issue 5 May 2022 600 Boulevard South Suite 104 Huntsville, AL 35802

2

Huntsville BUSINESS JOURNAL

NASA

Startup EV Company Canoo Lands NASA Artemis Contract When astronauts take the first return to the Moon since the United State’s Apollo program went there in late 1972, those chosen for the 2025 mission will be shuttled to the launchpad for the first manned Artemis space flight in a vehicle with a name closely associated with the earliest form of human travel.

Canoo is the name of a startup Electric Vehicle (EV) company, which has offices in California, Texas and Michigan and plans to build a manufacturing plant in Oklahoma.

The EV is the latest addition to the Artemis program. An Orion spaceship that will be used in the Artemis project will be powered by the Space Launch Systems (SLS), the most powerful rocket ever developed.

Companies in Huntsville and Decatur are spearheading the development and testing of not only the SLS but many of the complex components that go into returning humans

back to the Moon.

These companies are operating under the umbrella of NASA’s Marshall Space Flight Center. The Artemis program is being undertaken by companies nationwide and internationally with the Rocket City playing a leading role.

Among the local sites involved is Boeing’s Huntsville-based Space and Launch Division. Boeing is the core stage lead contractor with the city’s division handling the SLS work. “We in the City of Huntsville, Madison County, North Alabama ought to be proud.

We own this rocket. We’re the ones de-

veloping it in partnership with industry and the rest of the country,” said David SLS System Engineering Integration Manager David Beaman.

Meanwhile, Canoo was selected to provide NASA with the Artemis Crew and Transport Vehicle (CTV).

Competing bidders have until later this month to protest the award.

The initial contract is worth $146,855 for one vehicle to be delivered for use at the Kennedy Space Center by June 2023.

The contract calls for a street legal vehicle with the capacity for one driver,

By Mike Easterling Photos courtesy of Canoo

four suited-up Flight Crew Members, and three additional staff, plus six equipment bags, cooling units, and two cubic feet per passenger for miscellaneous items. At least two large doors for entry/egress and emergency exit are needed, and it has to use a zero-emissions powertrain.

The CTV will be designed to cover an approximately 10-mile journey from the Operations and Checkout Building to Launch Pad 39B at Kennedy Space Center. And if the launch isn’t successful, it will be responsible for bringing them back. w

May 2022

3

SIT DOWN WITH SUCCESS

Stewart Money Brings Geek Chic to Brewing Huntsville is a rising star in the brewery scene, featuring hidden gems such as InnerSpace Brewing Company at 2414 Clinton Ave. W. Although outwardly modest, the interior is loaded with sci-fi and space-themed character, referred to by one customer as “geek chic.”

After earning a history degree from Auburn, then a master’s in Science, Technology and Public Policy at George Washington University, Innerspace founder Stewart Money ended up working at the Space Policy Institute. He later worked at his family’s Huntsville business for a number of years before deciding to try something new.

What made you decide to open a brewery?

We were really drawn to the breweries in Munich…watching how people interacted with each other at these breweries was really

eye-opening to us. There were a lot of tourists, there were also a lot of Bavarians, native Germans, residents of Munich…it was so family-friendly.

That sort of set the stage as our perception of what a brewery was or could be.” Money described InnerSpace as “the Huntsville interpretation of what we loved most about what we saw in Munich.

What made you decide to open a brewery here in Huntsville?

[Note: he and his wife live halfway between Huntsville and Birmingham, where she works as a nurse].

I wanted to be across the counter from the engineers and scientists and the people that come into Huntsville…it was as much about opening a space-themed brewery as it was about opening a brewery.

What advice do you have for prospective brewery owners?

By Dawn Suiter / Photo by Steve Babin

Do it. If you’re going to do it, do it 100, 110%. There’s always room for more beer, for more breweries, for more innovation. But you’ve gotta make sure your family or whoever with you is all in. And this sounds trite, but just whatever you think the budget is, multiply it times three and multiply the time by probably about the same factor. It’s just going to cost way, way more.

What would you say is the secret to your success?

I have a fantastic staff that engages with customers. [Note: Money said that this was key during the pandemic]. We would have been in real trouble if we hadn’t made great customer relationships prior to Covid and the shutdown.

The proof is in the reviews: alongside the delicious beers and pizzas, customers consistently praise its friendly staff, fun atmosphere,

and great service.

“A brewery is supposed to be a social place. It’s supposed to be a friendly place,” Money said. It’s also a smart place, employing a number of college students. “Half of my staff are astrophysicists,” he said. “Literally. I take pride in being the stupidest person in the room,” he joked. w

4

Huntsville BUSINESS JOURNAL

Subsidiary of EVENT Publishing

President /Publisher……………………………………………… Todd Stephenson Editor …………………………………………………………………… Gus Wintzell Writers………………………………………………………………… Alan Clemons Lori J. Connors Mike Easterling Marie Johnson Noah Logan Alyssa Mitchell Dawn Suiter Contributing Writer…………………………………………………… John Kvach Graphic Design ……………………………………………………… Justina Simon Website……………………………………………………………………… Jim Gharib Photographers………………………………………………………… Steve Babin Justina Simon Director of Sales ……………………………………………… Carolyn Stephenson Account Executives…………………………………………………… Noah Logan Marilyn Pinchock Distribution……………………………………………………………… Glenda Mace Huntsville Business Journal is published monthly by EVENT Publishing,

PO Box 14219, Huntsville, AL 35815.

For advertising information call 256.533.8078, e-mail todd@eventhuntsville.com, or visit us on the web at www.huntsvillebusinessjournal.com For editorial information contact editor@huntsvillebusinessjournal.com ALL CONTENTS ©2021. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED. REPRODUCTION OR USE IN WHOLE OR IN PART OF THE CONTENTS WITHOUT THE PRIOR WRITTEN PERMISSION OF THE PUBLISHER IS PROHIBITED. HUNTSVILLE BUSINESS JOURNAL IS A REGISTERED TRADEMARK OF EVENT PUBLISHING. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED. UNSOLICITED PHOTOGRAPHS OR ARTICLES ARE SUBMITTED AT THE RISK OF THE PHOTOGRAPHER OR AUTHOR. EVENT PUBLISHING ASSUMES NO LIABILITY FOR THE RETURN OF ANY UNSOLICITED MATERIALS AND MAY USE THEM AT ITS DISCRETION.

May 2022

5

TECHNOLOGY

Huntsville’s Adtran Set to Bring 10 Gigabit Broadband Speeds to Tennessee The Huntsville based Adtran Inc. recently announced that the Twin Lakes Telephone Cooperative Corporation selected the Adtran 10G fiber access platform to bring fiber broadband connections with 10G speed across the rural Tennessee area. Adtran is a leading provider of next-generation multi-gigabit fiber access and fiber extension solutions.

Twin Lakes Telephone Cooperation’s advanced fiber network will now better connect its communities, transform how local businesses operate and attract new industries and economic development to the region. Twin Lakes is the largest telecom co-op in Tennessee, providing multi-gigabit services to residents, businesses, schools, hospitals and wireless carriers over a 100% fiber optic network.

“Adtran has been a big part of that success. It has been a reliable partner that we can trust to help us build the right network at the right time…”

According to officials from Twin Lakes, a steady increase in broadband demand required the company to upgrade its existing 1G infrastructure to support a highercapacity speed tier and Adtran 10G PON (passive optical network) solutions were the best fit. Adtran Combo PON capability enables Twin Lakes to upgrade network infrastructure with cards that seamlessly support new multi-gigabit XGS-PON services without disrupting existing GPON customers.

“In 2021, we celebrated 70 years in service, connected our 30,000th customer and completed our 100% fiber network, positioning us to meet our customers’ needs

for generations to come. Adtran has been a big part of that success. It has been a reliable partner that we can trust to help us build the right network at the right time,” said Jonathan West, General Manager and CEO at Twin Lakes. “We deployed GPON first, but it has limited upstream speeds which are critical to supporting streaming services, cloud computing and more. Adtran eliminated those limitations with its XGS-PON solutions.”

Both businesses and residents are already benefiting from Twin Lakes’ multi-gigabit fiber network.

While some employment numbers are down in areas located in Twin Lakes’ service footprint, the fiber network supports a digital infrastructure that is attracting new business to the area while also enabling residents to expand their job searches as remote employees. Additionally, the high-speed network is enabling veterans to remotely connect to healthcare instead of driving long distances to a VA hospital.

“It is rewarding to see the positive community impact our

customers are making with their multi-gigabit networks. Twin Lakes has been using Adtran broadband solutions since 2007, when it first started building its fiber network.

Today the network is literally changing the way local businesses operate,” said Craig Stein, Vice President, Americas & Head of Global Business Development for Adtran.

“Adtran Combo PON provides a no-compromise migration path to 10G PON, affording any type of service provider to easily provide competitive broadband services and

“Adtran Combo PON provides a no-compromise migration path to 10G PON, affording any type of service provider to easily provide competitive broadband services and connect their communities to new opportunities.”

By Noah Logan

“We’re excited to provide the opportunity for our partners to grow their businesses and capture new revenue streams by leveraging our expertise in both broadband access and supportive channel programs.” connect their communities to new opportunities.”

This announcement caps off a busy week for the Huntsville based company as Adtran also launched its new Broadband Partner Program. Adtran executives said the program will help tap into recent federal investments into broadband services via the new $1.2 trillion Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act. The bill allocates up to $65 billion for broadband expansion.

“The timing of the Broadband Partner Program could not be better because our program’s benefits encompass every type of provider working to deliver broadband across the U.S. and ensure broadband equity across the country,” said Stein.

Reseller partners, through this program, will target customers in the utilities, ISP and public sector markets.

“Traditionally, we have supported business customers through our channel partners, so enabling broadband-focused partners to bring Adtran solutions to their customers demonstrates our commitment to investing in broadband enablement across the U.S,” Stein said. “We’re excited to provide the opportunity for our partners to grow their businesses and capture new revenue streams by leveraging our expertise in both broadband access and supportive channel programs.” w

6

Huntsville BUSINESS JOURNAL

TECHNOLOGY

Teledyne Brown Engineering to Blaze New Trails with Nissan, Sierra Space This year’s 37th Space Symposium in Colorado Springs brought exciting news when Teledyne Brown Engineering, Sierra Space, and Nissan North America announced their partnership in the creation of the next-generation crewed Lunar Terrain Vehicle (LTV).

Huntsville engineers will play a significant role in the LTV’s development. According to a Teledyne Brown spokesperson, Teledyne Brown Engineering will be the lead on the design and integration of the vehicle, which will be performed at the Huntsville facility.

Born in Huntsville during the Apollo era to support the Wernher von Braun team’s development of the Redstone Rocket, Teledyne is no stranger to NASA missions, having supported essentially every major U.S. space initiative.

As the Prime Contractor, it has performed Payload Operations and Integration work for the space pro-

By Dawn Suiter / Photos courtesy of Teledyne Brown Engineering

“We are proud to continue our extensive presence in space and are excited at the possibility of transporting the first woman and person of color on the surface of the moon.”

gram for over 40 years for Space Shuttle missions and for International Space Station (ISS) payloads.

Teledyne also provided power systems for the Curiosity and Perseverance Rovers, which are currently operating on Mars. More recently, it designed, built, and delivered the first of three Launch Vehicle Stage Adapters for NASA’s Artemis Vehicles.

“Teledyne Brown Engineering

built the first lunar rover prototype for Dr. Werner von Braun in the 1960’s and we have subsequently supported almost every major U.S. human rated space mission,” stated Reggie Spivey, Vice President of Teledyne’s Space Systems Group, “We are proud to continue our extensive presence in space and are excited at the possibility of transporting the first woman and person of color on the

surface of the moon.”

Although Boeing and General Motors ultimately worked together to build the lunar rover that transported astronauts on the Moon, Teledyne Brown’s (then Brown Engineering Company) prototypes proved invaluable for Marshall Space Flight Center’s human factors studies that prepared the astronauts for the operation of the rovers on the lunar surface.

Teledyne’s partner Sierra Space will provide flight software, space qualified mechanisms, communications, pointing, navigation, and

May 2022

7

TECHNOLOGY

timing for the LTV. Sierra Space’s Dream Chaser space plane, which is slated to perform future cargo supply and return missions for NASA to and from the ISS, is a part of the company’s robust portfolio of products.

The Dream Chaser also has potential future ties to the Rocket City--a Federal Aviation Administration representative stated that the FAA is currently evaluating the reentry site operator license application and anticipates completing the environ-

mental review process in Spring 2022.

If approved by the FAA, it could start landing on Runway 18L-36R beginning in 2023.

Nissan North America, meanwhile, will bring its autonomous driving and intelligent vehicle systems technologies to the project.

“With this partnership, we will explore possibilities of autonomy and teleoperations, power management systems, vehicle connectivity, and human-machine interface to help shape

the future of intelligent lunar rovers.

We will then translate these learnings from the LTV operating on the lunar surface back to earth,” said Maarten Sierhuis, Alliance Global Director of Nissan’s Alliance Innovation Laboratory in Silicon Valley, Calif.

Other partners on the LTV team include Textron Specialized Vehicles, which manufactures Arctic Cat Off Road vehicles; Relative Dynamics, which brings experience in space

communications systems; and QSTC (formerly AQST), which will bring expertise in communication, control, wheel, and traction control capabilities to the Teledyne team.

“We feel that we have created a dynamic, cutting edge and proven team for this effort,” stated Scott Hall, president of Teledyne Brown Engineering. “Together this team will deliver a rugged, versatile, and intuitive vehicle to support our future in space.” w

8

Huntsville BUSINESS JOURNAL

TECHNOLOGY

Hill Technical Solutions Showcases Its New ADEPT Center Hill Technical Solutions (HTS) celebrated its expansion recently with the grand opening of its Analysis, Digital Engineering, and Prototype Technology (ADEPT) Center at its new corporate headquarters at 700 Boulevard South SW in Huntsville.

Founded in 2010 by Brad and Stacey Hill, HTS provides engineering solutions for major government programs for the Department of Defense, Missile Defense Agency, the U.S. Air Force, and the U.S. Navy.

The HTS ADEPT Center provides a working lab and demonstration center equipped to support both classified and unclassified projects, allowing users to find solutions through digital engineering, modeling and simulation, systems analysis, and other tools and processes. The center provides a collaborative environment in which users can work at stations customized for them to solve problems.

In August 2021, HTS made

By Dawn Suiter / Photos by Dawn Suiter and Hill Technical Solutions

“In Huntsville, Alabama, we will continue to grow, continue to thrive because of companies like Hill Technical [Solutions],…”

the Inc. 5000 list for the fifth time, ranking No. 1158 in America’s fastest-growing private companies with a three-year revenue growth of 420 percent. The company currently ranks 14th on Inc’s list of fastest-growing Alabama companies and 9th on the Huntsville list.

A large audience was in attendance at the event. Along with Chamber representatives, Huntsville

Mayor Tommy Battle and U.S. Congressman Mo Brooks were on hand to assist with the ribbon cutting.

In his address to the attendees, HTS CEO Glenn Turner stated that he anticipates the addition of about 250 jobs to the community over the next couple of years as a result of the opening of the ADEPT Center.

Mayor Battle congratulated Hill

Technical Solutions, adding that he had just returned from spending three days at the National Space Symposium in Colorado Springs.

“There’s a competitive atmosphere out there…the most important thing is, we have the people here, we have the facilities here, we have everything that gives us a competitive edge over everybody else,” Battle said. “In

May 2022

TECHNOLOGY

Pictured left to right: Richard Bigoney, Huntsville mayor Tommy Battle, Congressman Mo Brooks, Glenn Turner

Huntsville, Alabama, we will continue to grow, continue to thrive because of companies like Hill Technical [Solutions], because of the team members like we find here, and because of leadership like Glenn’s provided, like the whole leadership team has provided.”

“It’s fantastic that Hill Technical Solutions is doing what it’s doing in our community, of all the places in the world that they could have located,” said Congressman Brooks. “I want to thank the Hills for risking the capital, for taking that kind of chance to start up this kind of business that is brought to fruition now roughly 160 employees around the country and 140-some odd here in Huntsville, Alabama.”

Brooks, a member of the House Armed Services Committee, stated that the world is becoming more dangerous. “Everything that we do in our community, particularly as it relates to missile defense, comes to mind. We’ve got to make sure our warfighters have the best protection that missile defense can offer against any kind of weaponry, whether it be the normal types of missiles or the development of hypersonic defense capabilities,” Brooks said.

“We also have to have the capability to be on offense so that we can stop some of these attacks before they’re even launched, to the extent that we can destroy the facilities that our foes may deploy in other parts of the world as they’re attacking either us or our allies,” he continued.

Brooks expressed his pride in what the Huntsville community does for the national security of the United States of America and what

“We’re really looking forward to what we can accomplish in here to help the warfighter and the local community, and to help advance technology so we can all have a secure nation.”

Hill Technical Solutions does as a part of the bigger team here in the Tennessee Valley.

“Thank you so much for the contributions you’re making to our national security and to all the people in this room who are contributing in one way or another to help us enjoy the kind of freedoms and liberties that are the envy of so many parts of the world,” he concluded.

Following Brooks’s address, Richard Bigoney of the Huntsville/ Madison County Chamber of Commerce offered his congratulations for the success of the company, presenting Turner with a membership plaque to commemorate the occasion. He noted that HTS has won multiple awards for Best Places to Work. “Obviously you have a great business model, you’re doing it the right way, and we’re very appreciative of that.”

Following the ribbon cutting, Turner again addressed the crowd, thanking the attendees for celebrating with them: “We’re really looking forward to what we can accomplish in here to help the warfighter and the local community, and to help advance technology so we can all have a secure nation.” w

9

10

Huntsville BUSINESS JOURNAL

SMALL BUSINESS

Church Street Family Preparing to Welcome Two New Additions

By Dawn Suiter / Photos courtesy of Stephanie Kennedy-Mell

The Church Street Family, one of Huntsville’s most prominent collections of wining and dining establishments, is eagerly anticipating the opening of its two newest family members.

Stephanie Kennedy-Mell announced the upcoming opening of a second location of the Church Street Wine Shoppe in the Village of Providence at 485 Providence Main St NW, Suite 101. The new store, which will be called Church Street Wine Bar & Bottle Shoppe, has a planned opening date of mid to late April and will be modeled after the original location at 501 Church Street in Downtown Huntsville.

“We’re excited to be here; I know the community as a whole has been very excited and very, very welcoming,” Kennedy-Mell said that she decided to expand to Providence because of its continuing growth, adding that a lot of customers in Huntsville were asking for a new location closer to Madison. “When the opportunity arose for this particular space, Matt [her husband] and I came in and took a look and we thought it was a really good fit and a great next step for Church Street Family.” She added that this will be the first location outside of the Downtown Huntsville area.

“We’re excited to be here; I know the community as a whole has been very excited and very, very welcoming,” she added.

The new outlet will feature many of the same trademark features as its parent store, including wall racks that hold bottles horizontally in order to show off their full labels; a selection of local beers, “a small, fun menu” of food, tapas items, and desserts; a focus on local artists and musicians; and a relaxed, fun ‘come as you are,’ unpretentious vibe. TVs will provide entertainment for peo-

“Our goal is to kind of start to get you a little out of your comfort zone so you can start to expand your palate, so you can have a little more fun with wine.” ple sitting at the bar and lounge seats will provide visitors with a comfortable, homey place to sit and chat.

Personal service and a handson approach are also hallmarks of Church Street Wine Shoppe and its sister store: “if you’ve never drank wine before or you’re just starting to get into wine, you can walk into one of our wine shops and someone will hold your hand and walk you through, you know, not make you feel like you don’t know anything.

Everyone has to start somewhere.

And I kind of love those customers anyway because it’s a lot of fun to start figuring out their palate little by little,” she said. “Our goal is to kind of start to get you a little out of your comfort zone so you can start to expand your palate, so you can have a little more fun with wine.”

The Church Street Wine Bar & Bottle Shoppe will also feature an outdoor patio where patrons can enjoy their food and drink al fresco

while listening to live music. Kennedy-Mell said that there will be at least two live performances a week featuring local musicians.

The Providence location will be open for lunch and dinner, with wine flights available seven days a week. It will also feature a by-the-glass wine list, specialty pop-up specialty wine tastings, four-flavor wine flights, and a wine club offering five-course sit-down wine tastings with food pairings. In addition, the Church Street Wine Bar & Bottle Shoppe will offer event spaces, even allowing part of or even the entire space to be reserved for special events.

“We typically have an artist in house. They stay for three months for their showing time. All of their art is for sale,…”

Like its sister store, local art will be an integral part of the Providence location. Kennedy-Mell, who did the majority of the design for all of the company’s restaurants and bars, noted its signature warm golden yellow walls, saying that in seven years of putting art on the Church Street Wine Shoppe’s walls she’s found that every piece of art looks amazing

against that color.

“We typically have an artist in house. They stay for three months for their showing time. All of their art is for sale, and we typically do one day within their three-month showing that’s a ‘meet the artist,’ and the artist comes in and we’ll do a fundraiser for the charity of the artist’s choice on that night. So you get to meet them, you get to give back to a local charity they love, so they feel like they’re not just selling art, they’re helping out their favorite charities as well,” she explained.

Many of the artists come from Lowe Mill. Kennedy said that the current featured artist at the original Church Street Wine Shoppe is Jeff White, a local photographer who also works for Event Magazine and does wedding and event photography.

In addition to the Church Street Wine Bar & Bottle Shoppe, Kennedy-Mell revealed an entirely new restaurant offering, Famous Eleanors, which will open later in April.

She explained that it’s named in homage to a number of different women associated with rocket science, space, and aviation, as well as the grandmother of Kennedy-Mell’s husband.

“When you Google ‘famous Eleanors in Rocket Science,’ you’ll be surprised at how many actually do pop up,” she said, noting astronomer Eleanor Francis Helin; Eleanor Sigrest, who won a major award for her groundbreaking rocket nozzle research as a middle school student in 2016; and even First Lady Eleanor Roosevelt, who flew with Tuskegee Airman Charles Alfred Anderson, “The Father of Black Aviation,” on an hour-long flight over Alabama in order to demonstrate her support for Black pilots and the Institute’s training program.

In addition to the famous Eleanors in STEM, Kennedy-Mell included her husband’s grandmother Eleanor in the list, explaining “Matthew’s grandmother’s name is

May 2022

11

SMALL BUSINESS

“We will be exclusively a kitchen at Rocket Republic,” Eleanor, and she’ll be my last ‘famous Eleanor’ because without her we wouldn’t have Matt, and then we wouldn’t have all of the Church Street Families.”

Famous Eleanors will be housed within Rocket Republic Downtown HSV on 617 Meridian St N. The Church Street Family’s upcoming attraction, which is currently nearing completion, will feature what Kennedy-Mell described as “elevated pub food” and will be served with Rocket Republic’s signature beer selection. “We will be exclusively a kitchen at Rocket Republic,” Kennedy-Mell said.

While Rocket Republic will house the indoor dining area for Famous Eleanors, Kennedy-Mell stated that it has “what I would call one of the best patios in Downtown Huntsville that no one knows is even there, but we’re gonna change that because it’s a beautiful outside patio.”

Famous Eleanors will also feature a phone app that will allow customers to see a menu, order, and pay for their food. Customers will then pick up their orders at the window.

Although she has not yet disclosed any further details, the Church Street Family is planning further expansion later in 2022, which will bring its total number of outlets to nine by the end of the year. In addition to the two Church Street Wine Shoppe locations and the forthcoming Famous Eleanors, the Church Street Family’s other offerings include Mazzara’s Vinoteca, Purveyor, Pourhouse, the Catacomb435 speakeasy, and Sea Salt Urban Oyster Bar. When asked whether she would recommend Huntsville to other people considering starting a small business, Kennedy-Mell responded “as somebody who by the end of this year will have nine different [restaurant and bar] concepts, all small, I

guess it would be crazy for me to say no.”

She continued “I think it’s a great market. It’s a very open market, I mean very open-minded, meaning that people are excited for new things, looking for new things.

I’m excited for Huntsville’s growth, not only from the business perspective, but from the residential perspective.”

Kennedy-Mell stated that people in the South travel and know what they want, but “after the pandemic especially, they’re looking to stay home. And if we can give them a reason to not have to leave Huntsville and they can have these stay-cations, then I’ve done my job.”

Kennedy-Mell added “People used to come into Huntsville and drop their kids off at Space Camp and then they’d be like ‘let’s go to Nashville.’ And I think we’re starting to see more and more people be like ‘okay, let’s go to Downtown, let’s go to MidCity, let’s go to Providence, right? So I do think that small businesses add kind of the color to the palette that makes a city really interesting and fun and unique.

Yes, there are chains downtown but there’s nothing like a small business with a unique perspective of what they want to bring to the city.”

“We’re super excited to be part of the Providence community–we already have relationships with some of the businesses here and they’ve been so open and so gracious, so we’re really excited and it’s going to be a fun community.”

Church Street Wine Bar & Bottle Shoppe is currently searching for new employees. “We’ll teach you wine. We’re looking for passionate people more so than anything else,” Kennedy-Mell said, adding “We’re super excited to be part of the Providence community–we already have relationships with some of the

businesses here and they’ve been so open and so gracious, so we’re really excited and it’s going to be a fun community.”

She related a statement by a woman she interviewed for a marketing position: “I thought it was the best take on Huntsville with

the growth, since we were just talking about that. She said her son said ‘you know, Huntsville’s like that old ex-girlfriend that got hot again.’

You know, that’s such a great description of Huntsville. We’re excited to be part of that growth at Church Street Family.” w

12

Huntsville BUSINESS JOURNAL

COVER COVER S

UAH Expansion

By Marie Johnson / Ph The University of Alabama Huntsville recently announced the approval of Phase 1 of its overhaul of its campus, beginning with the College of Engineering.

As Huntsville has grown larger, more sophisticated, and more prosperous, so too has the University grown along with it. What began as a small commuter campus, an offshoot of the main University of Alabama campus to service the needs of NASA, has grown into one of the nation’s leading research centers.

With 17 research centers, UAH is ranked as one of the top 20 American universities in 6 fields, by the NSF. The Brookings Institute recently ranked UAH as the top university in the state based on the economic outcomes of its graduates.

UAH reported a student body of around 10,000 students in the 20202021 year, and that number is only expected to grow as the pandemic abates.

An institution growing in significance and prestige needs to expand and develop accordingly. The new building to be constructed for the College of Engineering is certainly a key and central facet of that strategy.

With projects ranging from computer

science and cybersecurity to aeronautics and hypersonic technology, the College of Engineering at UAH has become a critical national resource in defense.

With the Huntsville’s demand for a highly-trained, technical workforce continuing to grow, the new engineering building is an important part in meeting the needs of the defense sector. Moreover, the interim president of UAH, Dr. Chuck Karr, has confirmed to the Huntsville Business Journal that, in the event of the Board of Trustees approving of Phase II of the overhaul, the College of Engineering will occupy the renovated Wernher Von Braun Research Hall as well.

“Building on the remarkable momentum in Huntsville, it is critical for UAH to continue fulfilling the region’s educational, workforce and research needs,” said Dr. Karr. “A new engineering building will help us drive impactful research efforts and recruit and graduate exceptional students that meet the area’s growing high-tech workforce needs. I am grateful for and excited about the opportunity to provide this remarkable facility for our outstanding students,

May 2022

13

STORY STORY

Plans On-Track

hotos courtesy of UAH faculty, and staff.”

The changes to UAH have necessitated an evolution of the institution, transitioning away from a primarily commuter campus and into more of a traditional university.

In 2017, UAH purchased 58 acres of land on the opposite side of Sparkman Drive, across from the university’s Bevill Center. According to the ‘master plan’ document made publicly available online, the land will be converted into a ‘mixed-use’ district to serve the student body and offer more of a ‘traditional college town experience.’

Demolition of the existing buildings, the Executive Plaza, is underway.

As the land is cleared, plans are being drawn up to be presented to the Board of Trustees. While concrete specifics cannot be fully disclosed at this time, some common elements are frequently floated for consideration.

One of those elements that arise repeatedly is the construction of a pedestrian skybridge over Sparkman Drive. This would be in keeping with the master plan’s stated emphasis on walkability.

The mixed-use district is aiming to include affordable student housing, including small units for single occupancy, and larger units for nontraditional students with spouses or families to live with them during their studies.

Preliminary designs suggest that housing would be built around the concept of ‘parkside living,’ with buildings arrayed around a central park, providing a green space for residents.

To serve students on campus, a portion of the land would be designated for a ‘commercial zone,’ to provide access to businesses in a walkable, accessible district. Some proposed

businesses that the university hopes to induce to open their doors in the district include at least one pharmacy, a bank, cafes, and retail stores.

Many of the concept renderings of the mixed-use district prominently feature a large combination hotel and conference center.

The location of the mixed-use district connects the UAH campus with

the Cummings Research Park. As a consequence, plans may well include a transitionary research/office section to seamlessly blend the university with the business sector.

The Huntsville Business Journal will continue to report on developments as these plans are finalized and presented to the UA Board of Trustees. w

14

Huntsville BUSINESS JOURNAL

COMMUNITY DEVELOPMENT

Making History: Huntsville Breaks Ground on New City Hall Despite the April morning rain, wind, and chill, Huntsville City Hall became the site of celebration as Mayor Tommy Battle welcomed the media, Council members, and other dignitaries to witness the beginning of the next chapter of the city’s history.

The official groundbreaking was held at the site of the future municipal complex across the street from the present City Hall on Fountain Circle.

Along with Mayor Battle, speakers at the event included Jeffrey Brewer, CEO of Goodwyn Mills Cawood (GMC); Turner Construction Business Manager Brendan McCormick; City Administrator John Hamilton; Huntsville City Director of Finance Penny Smith; and Director of City Engineering Kathy Martin.

“The decision to build a new municipal complex was not an easy one,” said Mayor Battle, who stated that they were very fond of the old build-

ing, which has served the city since the 1960s.

Battle noted that the existing facility has reached the end of its

structural life. “The reason we stand here is we need a new City Hall.

We’ve gone through the process of getting ready, and we’ve realized

By Dawn Suiter / Photos by Dawn Suiter that our rapidly growing city needs a building that is more functional, more cost efficient, and will give us room to grow,” he said.

“A City Hall that will better serve our residents and businesses and one that will remain in the heart of downtown, but also that will be a point of pride for our community,” Battle continued.

When it opens in about two years, the new municipal building will be 2 ½ times larger than the present City Hall, allowing all of the city’s departments to operate together under one roof. “It will allow us to work more efficiently, make offices more convenient for residents to access, and more importantly, it will be a far better use of taxpayer dollars,” Battle explained.

Jeffrey Brewer of Goodwyn Mills Cawood joked that “A couple of years from now it’s going to be a sunny day” when the ribbon is cut on the new

May 2022

15

COMMUNITY DEVELOPMENT

facility. “For the first time, the city will have a facility that matches the caliber of services it provides to the community,” he said. “We couldn’t be more excited and look forward to seeing you at the ribbon cutting.”

“We recognize that projects like this don’t come along very often, so like many of you we’re very grateful to be part of the teams that have come together to put this project in place and forever change the skyline of Downtown Huntsville,” stated Brendan McCormick of Turner Construction.

“This project demonstrates the continued collaboration between the City of Huntsville and Turner Construction, along with the talented team at Goodwyn Mills Cawood,” McCormick said. “It demonstrates the dynamic leadership from the City of Huntsville, shifting to meet the needs of a growing City, and it represents a legacy for Turner, building in the City we’ve called home since the 1950s.”

Mayor Battle then invited Smith and Martin to discuss the changes the new facility will bring to their teams.

In addition to being able to leave the frustrations of leaks, rodent infestations, and climate control issues behind, Smith expressed excitement about finally being able to bring her whole team together.

“I am most looking forward to the day when all of Finance will be on the same floor. Right now we have approximately 35 people spread across four floors in City Hall. This makes collaboration and coordination at work very difficult,” Smith explained. “While all the people are free to move around from office to office, it’s a big difference in how you interact with somebody, understand their work, and work alongside somebody that’s on the same floor as opposed to somebody on a different floor.”

City Administrator John Hamilton recognized the great effort that went into the planning of the future City Hall, stating that while Mayor Battle had said that it would serve the City for decades, they expect it to serve Huntsville for “seven, eight, nine, ten decades into the future... you can’t stand here today and say

that and genuinely believe it without the effort that’s gone into the planning and the design of this facility.”

Hamilton emphasized the planning that went into ensuring that the facility was designed with the capacity for growth and change over time.

“That’s a challenging thing to do, when you ask a department head to think about not just their tenure and not just about their replacement’s tenure, but their replacement’s replacement,” he said. “I’m just really impressed with the effort that they put into it.”

Hamilton also recognized City Hall’s partnership with Arts Huntsville, discussing how they will help create an “iconic facility downtown” through the introduction of art projects. “At the ribbon cutting, we’ll also be unveiling some really cool world-class pieces of art that we hope represents our community and brings people together.”

Just prior to the ceremonial groundbreaking, Mayor Battle announced the future plans for the existing City Hall once the new facility opens. Although the downtown master plan originally proposed a mixed-use facility with hotel, office, and residential spaces, “we gave serious consideration to those options, but we decided to go in a different direction.”

“Today I’m pleased to announce that I’m going to be recommending to our Council that we return this property to our community and make it part of the Big Spring Park,” Mayor Battle said.

“With the growth we’re experiencing downtown, we need more places to play,” he continued. “This two-and-a-half acre site will be used to expand the park and provide more public space for everyone to enjoy.”

Mayor Battle said that his administrative team has begun discussing ideas on how to shape the new ad-

dition to Big Spring Park and will be holding public meetings to solicit input from residents regarding their thoughts and ideas on the park plan.

“I imagine we’ll get lots of public input–I know our people in

the City of Huntsville, and we look forward to having those conversations, because when we have those conversations we make sure we get it right, just like we did with this building here.” w

16

Huntsville BUSINESS JOURNAL

COMMUNITY DEVELOPMENT

Huntsville Chamber Hosts Governor Ivey’s 2022 Alabama Update The Von Braun Center North Hall last month held a large group of almost a thousand attendees as local residents gathered to hear Governor Kay Ivey’s 2022 Alabama Update, in which she discussed issues important to Huntsville.

The Huntsville-Madison County Chamber of Commerce hosted the luncheon event in which the governor gave her annual address to local business and civic leaders. Major sponsors for the event included LSINC Corporation, Meta, the Port of Huntsville, Aerojet Rocketdyne, The Boeing Company, HudsonAlpha Institute for Biotechnology, and S³, Inc. Greg Brown, 2022 Board Chair of the Huntsville/Madison County Chamber kicked off the event and Ronnie Chronister, Vice Chair of Government & Public Affairs for the Chamber provided the introduction.

Chronister credited Governor Ivey with helping bring thousands of jobs to North Alabama and helping create the infrastructure required to support those jobs.

He also expressed gratitude for the important road projects Ivey has brought to the state during her tenure, including the widening of I-565 which started in 2020. “I’ve mentioned this to Governor Ivey before: as someone who drives that road three or four times a week; thank you, thank you, thank you.”

Governor Ivey took the stage with a cheerful greeting, noting the huge crowd in attendance at the event and expressing her appreciation for being able to “spend this exciting day with you.”

Alluding to the rapid growth that has propelled Huntsville to become the largest city in the state, Ivey joked that it was surprising that she wasn’t in Huntsville to cut a ribbon or do a groundbreaking–”it just seems like the thing to do up here,” she quipped.

Ivey noted the state’s history of innovation. “You all continue doing that today,” she said, crediting Huntsville’s success for that of the state. “I’m confident that if we con-

tinue to work together, we’ll propel Alabama and our nation forward.”

“We’ve been together in Japan with officials from Mazda and Toyota, we’ve been fortunate to recruit businesses at the air shows in Paris and London, and we’ve joined together to tackle…improvements to our state’s infrastructure,” Ivey said, adding that she wasn’t referring to Washington D.C’s definition of infrastructure, but rather Alabama’s: “I mean roads and bridges.”

Noting that the state’s roads and bridges have needed work for some time and recounting recent work done in both the Huntsville/Madison County area and the state as a whole, Ivey announced that the Huntsville area would soon be on the receiving end of further improvements. “Today, I am thrilled to announce not just one, but three major projects in the area,” Ivey said.

The first of these projects will be Highway 72’s “long-overdue expansion, which will start at Providence Main.” She stated that Senator Tom Butler has been a strong advocate for this project. The second project will be the further improvement of Interstate Highway 565: “We completed work on 565 that stopped at County Line Road. Today, I am an-

nouncing that we will continue the expansion to Wall Triana.”

“If you travel Highway 53, you know about growing pains,” Ivey continued. “Today I’m here to tell you that more improvement is on the way. Highway 53 will be getting additional lanes from Taurus Drive to Harvest Road. Highway 72, 565, Highway 53–folks, that’s what Rebuild Alabama is all about.”

Ivey noted the Madison County area’s continuing success during the pandemic as a driving force behind the state’s growth, stating that even as much of the country went dark during the pandemic, “the Huntsville region’s economy kept growing,” with impressive numbers of new projects and expansions to industry.

Citing the area’s technology, bioscience, and military industries as reasons for much of this growth, Ivey stated that $2.7 billion in new capital investment created more than 1,500 new jobs. “This is absolutely a testament to the Huntsville area’s dynamic economy.”

“If I was a gambling woman, I’d put my money on the prediction that Huntsville and Madison County’s growth is only going up from here.”

Ivey also noted the thriving aerospace industry in North Alabama,

By Dawn Suiter / Photo by Dawn Suiter

referring to Huntsville as the perfect location for the Space Force. “We’re also looking forward to seeing the work of Marshall Space Flight Center, Blue Origin, and United Launch Alliance in Decatur as they blast off and reach new heights.”

“When you have top companies like this, it just makes sense that Huntsville is also the home to the Alabama School of Cyber Technology and Engineering,” she said.

Ivey stated that the state is continuing to invest in schools, adding that students’ education is the single most important issue in Alabama and across the nation.

“Today, I am also proud to announce that I am signing the Education Trust Fund budget. Yet again, we are making a historic investment in our students’ education.” Ivey stated that alongside the addition of Pre-K classrooms, the hiring of math coaches, and increased funding to after school programs, “teachers are getting a well-deserved pay increase and we are rewarding experienced teachers.”

“All of us in this room know that receiving a quality education opens up doors for the rest of one’s life,” she concluded. “I refuse to accept anything less.” w

May 2022

17

18

Huntsville BUSINESS JOURNAL

DEVELOPMENT

A Closer Look at the Redstone Gateway Development Over the past several months, the workforce across the nation has started to shift dramatically back to office spaces, transitioning back from a more hybrid work-style. For many employees and workers across the nation, increased attention has been placed on how office spaces can accommodate some of the amenities and comforts being lost during these transitions.

Office spaces everywhere, especially on and around Huntsville’s Redstone Arsenal, are having to deal with the question of employee retention and workforce development, shifting the focus on providing amenities for their returning workers. One booming development seems to offer the best solution.

In a recent interview with James Lomax, Vice President of Assessment Management and Leasing at Corporate Office Properties Trust, the Huntsville Business Journal was able to take a deeper dive into one of Huntsville’s largest current developments: the Redstone Gateway.

“Working with a modern workforce, one that really focuses on work-life balance, has been central to the Redstone Gateway project,” said Lomax. “It is critical to many of our plans moving forward.”

The Redstone Gateway development, a joint venture project between Corporate Office Properties Trust and Jim Wilson & Associates, touts 468 acres of office space and amenities, with around 110 of those acres behind the gate itself. Overall, the development will provide around five million square feet of office space, with the property currently sitting around 2,000,000 square feet. When put into context with the rest of Huntsville’s 20,000,000 square feet of office space, Redstone Gateway is providing around 10% of Huntsville’s overall office space when completed. Even more interesting is that the ground the development operates on is owned by the federal government, and the Army receives financial benefit as new buildings take shape on the sprawling campus.

Early in the interview, Lomax made a point that Redstone Gateway differs greatly from what he dubs as

the “classic office style” building space when it comes to amenities and oncampus comforts.

Again, Huntsville has somewhere around 20,000,000 square feet of office space on the market currently.

And, with business and industry growing exponentially, this number is certain to increase over the next few years.

In this way, Lomax and his team were faced with the problem of competition. How do you differentiate one Huntsville office space from the next?

What gives you the competitive advantage over other spaces throughout the city?

To answer this question, Lomax turned his attention towards the people actually working at the Redstone Gateway.

Providing a suitable, fun, and flexible workspace for employees returning back to work is one of the cornerstones of development nationwide. For the Redstone Gateway development, this translates to offering more amenities than ever before.

Currently, Redstone Gateway offers a variety of employee-friendly office park amenities, including restaurants, a coffee shop, walking paths, day care and hotels, just to name a few.

With a quick glance at the restaurant selection, you can find Fiero

Mexican Grill, a unique concept that combines classic Mexican cuisine with a more healthier expression, and Dip-

By Gus Wintzell

wich Original American Sandwich, which offers a variety of classic sandwiches, including a French Dip and an

May 2022

DEVELOPMENT

Italian beef sandwich.

For a quick morning caffeine fix, or a mid-afternoon pick-me-up, the campus features a smaller-concept of Offbeat Coffee Studio within the Redstone Gateway development. The coffee shoppe at Campus 805 is also a great place to swing by and grab a few vinyl records at the end of the work day.

Besides food and drink, the Redstone Gateway development also offers amenities focused on employee health, lifestyle and living.

“Redstone Gateway focuses on work-life balance to provide a welcoming experience for employees,” said Lomax in an interview with the Huntsville Business Journal. “When planning and developing the property, we focused on a green-heavy campus that offers employees a beautiful connection to nature, filtered air to benefit their personal health, and a completely walkable campus so that anyone can easily access all the amenities that Redstone Gateway offers.”

Redstone Gateway is home to Ardent daycare, a 22,000 square foot facility that includes 18 classrooms, a covered outdoor playground, smart board equipped preschool classrooms, including 4 distinct age appropriate outdoor play areas, a soccer field, a commercial grade kitchen, and a modern security system that includes HD cameras and secured en-

try/exit systems.

Ardent Daycare also features a variety of educational programs for children of employees, including Abeka Curriculum, Infant Curriculum, a Christian school and daycare, advanced academics, and Bible/ Bible CHaracter Teachings. For a more comprehensive list, please visit https://ardentpreschool.com/ locations/huntsville/.

Redstone Gateway also accommodates travel with the recent addition of TownePlace Suites by Marriot, which is located on the south side of the development’s six acre lake. Also in the works, according to Lomax, is a second hotel that will be announced soon.

When asked about the biggest takeaway that Redstone Gateway provides for Huntsville residents, Lomax responded that the development’s growth is a direct response to trends in North Alabama.

“Huntsville is the most booming city in Alabama, and one of the most booming cities throughout the nation. We are here to provide everything people need to stay competitive in the engineering, aerospace, and technology fields in both the present and future.”

In this way, the project echoes the major slogan for Redstone Gateway.

“Huntsville is currently leading the future workforce, and Redstone Gateway is where the future works.” w

19

20

Huntsville BUSINESS JOURNAL

WORKFORCE DEVELOPMENT

The Great Return, and the Future of Work

By Marie Johnson

Like many other American cities, Huntsville is beginning to emerge from the COVID-induced hibernation, with companies recalling their workers to traditional offices.

A great many of these workers are part of the Federal workforce, who are following the directives of the Biden administration.

“When I come home, I want to relax and get away from work, but full time telework gave me that opposite feeling.”

At the State of the Union speech, President Biden called on workers to return to the office, saying “It’s time for Americans to get back to work and fill our great downtowns again.

People working from home can feel safe to begin to return to the office.

We’re doing that here in the federal government. The vast majority of federal workers will once again work in person.”

Obviously, the Federal govern-

ment is the largest employer in Madison County, with Redstone Arsenal alone managing over $50 billion in Federal spending. Many firms that exist to service government

contracts take their cue from their private-sector counterparts.

National surveys have uncovered a surprising trend among American workers, namely that many of them actually prefer to work at an office at least some of the time.

Huntsville’s own Taye Alexander, a young engineer working for Huntsville’s defense sector, spoke with the Huntsville Business Journal. Alexander expressed his relief to return to the office.

“I am pleased, because my house was starting to feel like a prison, and not an oasis,” he said. “When I come home, I want to relax and get away from work, but full time telework gave me that opposite feeling.”

Alexander’s sentiments are echoed by others who work for Huntsville’s defense sector. “Jim,” 36, another local engineer, and his wife “Jessica,” 32, agreed to speak to the Huntsville Business Journal under a condition

May 2022

21

WORKFORCE DEVELOPMENT

of anonymity.

“Work from home created opportunities for many to split their work day into smaller chunks than the standard 8-hour day broken up by lunch,” said Jim. “However, those who continued to work in the office had more face-time with corporate leadership and will likely be on an accelerated promotion path than those who worked from home.”

Jessica, who was completing her Master’s at UAH during the pandemic, spoke on how surreal the experience of fulltime work from home was for her and her husband.

“It was a very disorienting experience for the both of us. It felt like we were repeating the same day over and over again. Looking back at 2020, it felt like one exhaustingly long weekend, or living an eternity in a completely static environment.”

Employers looking to coax employees back to the office, instead of attempting to brute-force the issue, would do well to emphasize the importance of this psychological seg-

regation of Work Life and Home Life.

The line between the two has become increasingly blurred and permeable with the advent and subsequent ubiquity of cell phone ownership, and the expectation of availability at all hours of day or night..

This blurring of Work Life and Home Life has the potential to become downright dystopian. Some businesses, such as real estate data firm CoStar, employed facial recognition apps to track employees’ faces and alert managers when workers’ attention strayed from their screen.

One employee was berated for stepping away from their computer for two minutes past their allotted 15-minute break. (It is no coincidence that CoStar also lost 37% of their workforce last year.)

A recent national survey by Stanford found that workers can be roughly divided into three camps: around 25% wish to work from home full-time, 20% wish to only work at an office, and 55% support a hybrid work model.

In a hybrid work model, employees’ time is split between remote work and working at an office. Prudential’s Pulse of the American Worker Survey found that, when asked directly if they would prefer to work from home at least one day out of the work week, a whopping 87% of respondents said that they would.

That’s a sentiment that Taye Alexander can agree with. “In a perfect world, I would go in twice a week, say Tuesday and Thursday, and work from home Monday-Wednesday-Friday. I believe that is a great balance of both environments.”

Balance and flexibility appear to be the keys to retaining a well-ordered, satisfied workforce in a post-pandemic business world. The conditions of the pandemic demonstrated that many of the traditional conventions of work - at least for many office jobs - are simply unnecessary, or at least, they aren’t necessary all of the time.

Yet losing the psychological demarcation between Work and Home, as well as the human connection with

colleagues, is also suboptimal.

Many of the factors cited by proponents of remote work, such as long hours wasted commuting to and from work in a car that requires upkeep, gas, and insurance, are factors that are not inherent to the work environment of the office, in and of itself, but rather, of the way in which our society has chosen to organize itself.

Building up walkable, livable communities, where people can feasibly live, work, eat, play, send their children to school - all of the things that human beings need to do to live well - without ever needing a car, could solve a lot of problems, and not just in easing the Work/Home dilemma.

Ultimately, businesses need to look at what they need to become successful in the future, not just at how things have been done in the past. Facilitating a flexible balance between remote work and traditional office work appears to be the best way forward. w

22

Huntsville BUSINESS JOURNAL

REAL ESTATE

Local Housing Demand Flourishes Despite Rising Interest Rates The buyers market enjoyed by house hunters at the height of the COVID-19 pandemic, when mortgage interest rates fell to record lows, is no longer.

The numbers now favor sellers and will continue to do so in the near future with interest rates rising at a rapid pace. Rates for a 30-year fixed mortgage, which dipped to a record low of 2.75 percent in 2021, is now in the neighborhood of 5.0 percent.

However, that figure is still below the 8.0 percent home buyers were paying at the start of the millennium, and the demand for housing in Huntsville remains high as the population soars.

Huntsville has quickly become the largest city in the state.

“Right now we’re seeing the interest rates rise,’’ Sara Lauren Kattos of Van Velkenburgh and Wilkinson Properties. “Economists are expecting that will slow some, but it’s still going light years faster than than most markets.’’

The surge of people moving into the Rocket City and Tennessee Valley seeking homes is outpacing the availability of houses in the area, a good albeit hectic problem to have for local and area realtors.

“I did a survey for a speaking engagement and we have less than a month of inventory right now in Madison County,’’ Kattos said.

“There’s less than a month’s worth on the market right now.’’

Demand is such that houses are reportedly selling over their listed

price. The local median sale price two years ago was $250,000 and has now eclipsed $330,000.

“It’s considerably different,’’ Kattos said. “That’s got some people wondering what’s going to happen in the future and there’s concern about affordability. But, there’s still a high demand.’’

The city’s estimated population is around 220,000 with close to 500,000 residents in the Huntsville Metro Area, according to roofstock. com which estimates that number to reach nearly 530,000 by 2030.

Roofstock.com also reported that the housing market shortage is Huntsville’s lowest in 20 years and blames the low supply inventory for a 12 percent increase in rental rates.

The site also credited that increase as one reason a “major financial publi-

“An economist came and spoke to the HuntsvilleMadison County Builders Association back in November, and his estimation was it was going to be about five years before we actually caught up with demand as far as new construction goes.” cation ranks Huntsville among the top seven smaller towns worth your investment dollars.’’

Kattos said global supply chain problems helped create the shortage.

“I know that a lot of builders have had issues getting what they

By Mike Easterling

need to be able to keep the construction process going in a timely way so that they can meet inspections and move to the next level,’’ she said. “An economist came and spoke to the Huntsville-Madison County Builders Association back in November, and his estimation was it was going to be about five years before we actually caught up with demand as far as new construction goes. It’s one of the reasons so many apartment buildings have been built, because in one building you can house that many more people.’’

Economist Lawrence Yun of the National Association of Realtors told realtors to expect interest rate hikes but they wouldn’t rise “too terribly much,’’ Kattos said.

Whatever the rates ascend to likely won’t slow the local housing market. Not even a pandemic could do that.

“We were busy in 2021,’’ Kattos said. “It was one of the best years ever as far as sales go for our company, and 2020 was an extraordinarily busy year as well. But 2021 was busier and part of that was that the interest rates were so low. Some say they were artificially low just to kind of keep the economy going in an unprecedented time.

“It was very busy and I know closing attorneys were very busy and mortgage companies were doing refinances. If the rates got much lower the banks would have been paying people to take their money, which is not not a sustainable process.’’ w

May 2022

23

RECOGNITIONS Julian Burley Joins the Huntsville/Madison County CVB

ServisFirst Bank Huntsville Announces New Board Member

Yesterday, the Huntsville-Madison County County Convention & Visitors Bureau (CVB) announced the hiring of Julian Burely as Administrative Assistant.

A natice of Columbia, Maryland, Burly moved to Huntsivlle and attended Oakwood University where he received his Bachelor’s degree in Business Administration.

The knowledge and networking skills Julian attained at this Historically Black College and University allowed him to gain valuable work experience in management in multiple fields from retail to healthcare and health and wellness. He is committed to the growth of the Huntsville/Madison County area and is looking forward to making this community a destination for all age groups and forms of entertainment through his efforts at the CVB. Travel and tourism is big business in Huntsville and Madison County. Despite the pandemic, in 2020 more than 2.8 million visitors accounted for an economic impact of $1.2 billion according to the Alabama Tourism Department

ServisFirst Bank, a subsidiary of ServisFirst Bancshares, announced the addition of Zack Penney as a Board Member of ServisFirst Bank Huntsville.

Zack graduated from Auburn in 2004 with a degree in Entrepreneurial and Family business. He continued to focus on his business path by attending and graduating from the National Auto Dealers Academy in McClean, Virginia in 2007.

Since graduating, Zach has been involved with a National Automobile Dealers Association (NADA) 20 group and serves on several Huntsivlle community boards including the Alabama Auto Dealers Association, Alabama Bass Trail, Southeast Toyota MArketing Board, to name a few. Zach is also a member of the Huntsville Rotary Club.

“Zack, his family, and their businesses have banked with ServisFirst Bank for many years, and his long-term relationships in our community and business acumen will help us continue to grow in our market,” said Andy Kattos, ServisFirst Bank Executive Vice President and Regional CEO. Currently, Zach owns and operates five dealerships in the Huntsville and Hasper markets. Zach looks to add from his ample past experiences to assist and advise during his time as a ServisFirst Bank Board Member.

ADVERTORIAL

Hughes Properties Update Part 2: A Step Forward After 28 years of dedicated service, Betty Hughes is retiring from Hughes Properties. This was first announced in November 2021. Betty plans to consult and spend time with her family and volunteer with nonprofit organizations.

Betty has had a distinguished career including recently being inducted into the National Association of Realtors RPAC Hall of Fame. Betty worked closely with Governor Bob Riley in helping to pass legislation regarding Homeowner Associations.

She has held multiple positions at both the local and state levels helping to lead and shape the Realtor world of North Alabama.

While Betty is moving forward into a new role, Hughes Properties begins its transition from a Full

Real Estate Management Company to a firm specializing in Homeowner Association (HOA) Management. Marion Myers will move into the role of Manager. Marion has been with Betty for the past 22 years and knows the dayto-day operations and the legacy Betty is bestowing to her. To begin this new era, the company’s name will change from Hughes Properties, Inc. to Hughes Properties II, LLC. Marion plans to continue the personal approach that built Hughes Properties. The ability to communicate and work directly with homeowners, vendors, agents, declarants, and Boards of Directors is what sets Hughes Properties apart from others in the business.

There will be minimal change and disruption to their clients during the transition.

“Hughes Properties provides stability and brings forward history to the present to ensure continuity regardless of declarant/developer or resident controlled boards.

Our vision is to have all the HOAs we manage be successful by supporting the HOAs in being transparent to all their residents within Madison and Limestone Counties.

We are a locally owned company that has history with the community and supports local organizations,” said Marion.

Marion Myers, Manager of Hughes Properties II, LLC. Marion aspires to continue the support of local charities and their client’s homeowner associations. contribute to the great work that they Marion and her team are ready to provide for our community. Veterans work diligently for their clients and and children’s programs are close to her to manage the clients’ homeowner asheart. Hughes Properties was recently sociations in the personal approach recognized for their donation to the Tut that Betty curated for Hughes PropFann Veteran’s Home. Marion wants to erties. do even more for these vital programs Please contact to Marion at and help to support their missions.

256-430-3088 or marion@hughesThe legacy and leadership provided properties.com if you are interested

by Betty will continue because Marion in speaking with us about what you understands the importance that it plays are looking for with a proven HOA in the success of Hughes Properties and management team.

24

Huntsville BUSINESS JOURNAL