Another auto plant? (Birmingham, Montgomery, Mobile: rent, jobs, health)

[Huntsville_secede]

Originally Posted by Bama`s Port

In my opinoin I believe that this plant should be built in the black belt( especialy this region) or the coastal areas of the state. Why should the black belt region suffer because of there politicians thsoe people are extremely poor and have no say so or power. Hunstville has a vibrant economy no need to be greedy. Don`t get me wrong i`m from Mobile and it mentioned Mobile and I want that plant in my area , but lets get serious the black belt realy need this. I noticed that some one from the Huntsville area mentioned about Huntsvillians that don`t have engineering degrees need jobs to. Which is true but , Huntsville has more opputunity than the black belt . Mobile has Austal average starting off salary 45 k a year employes 1200, will be expanding and will employe another 1 k no degree needed. Jobs at the port and docks 45 and 50 k jobs Port is undergoing a huge expansion will be hiring thousands of people to the 2 thousand are more they have now. There are other ship building and repair companies in Mobile that have won billion dollar contracts with the Navy in Mobile that are paying in 40 and 50 k range with no degree needed.Northrup Grunman has a palnt that build ships for the Navy in Pasagoula ,Miss (25 min away) employes over 2 thousand workers from Mobile ( 55 K + salary range). A steel piping plant which is being built in a Black community in Mobile will be hiring up to 300 workers with a starting slary of 40 k no degree needed my point is the bigger the city the more opputunity .H-ville Vs. any Black belt city has more oppurtunity.


I believe that the plant should be narrowed down to the black belt( becasue they realy need it) and the coastal areas( becasue i`m from the Gulf coast). This is just an opinion and opinions are nether right nor wrong !

LOL u just threw all that in about how the black belt needs it more and then also picked Mobile who probably has the best manufacturing economy in the state. So I'm going to do the same I say black belt or North Alabama/Huntsville. I agree with everything you said I never disagreed that the black belt needed this more but how often does stuff actually get done based on need alone. You are being just as greedy as me lol, just cause Huntsville has engineering jobs doesn't mean we cant use more but if North Alabama doesn't get it I hope its in the black belt.

[Frankie117]

It looks like Huntsville might be the company's choice, simply because they have the sufficient land and infrastructure.

What I find rather disturbing is how Huntsvillians(?) hate to see other parts of the state succeed at anything.



On a side note, discussion of this topic on another forum brought up Dothan finally getting an I-10 connector should this plant be built in their area.

[Huntsville_secede]

Originally Posted by Frankie117

It looks like Huntsville might be the company's choice, simply because they have the sufficient land and infrastructure.

What I find rather disturbing is how Huntsvillians(?) hate to see other parts of the state succeed at anything.

Where did you get this bizarre idea from? Maybe its more the other way around, some people in the state don't like to see Huntsville succeed because its full of non-Alabamians. Mobile has been getting tons of new jobs and I never hear people say Mobile shouldn't get this because they have so much or Birmingham shouldn't get this... The whole state has been prosperous, the rest of the state has been getting plenty of manufacturing jobs with the help of state provided incentives way before Huntsville entered its latest economic boom, it suffered hard during the 80s and 90s and was the largest city in the United States not connected to the interstate system up until the early 90s. Look at North Alabama's population and still no sorely needed east-west expressway or real intentions to build one, yet the state pushed for building a north-south one in western Alabama first, so I feel the state actually tries to prevent Huntsville and North Alabama from succeeding more so than Huntsvillians hating the rest of the state's progress. I'm all for infrastructure improvements in areas without it to help spur economic development but I think you have to give the populated areas that need it priority. That was really off subject but i had to defend this notion that somehow people in Huntsville hate to see the rest of the state progress. Like i said before I'd be happy for this plant anywhere in Alabama I want the state to improve its educational system and get a better transportation network, but theres nothing wrong with wanting the area you live in to get more jobs especially since the state only seems willing to fund major infrastructure improvements when there are auto jobs involved.

[Bama`s Port]

lol, yeah I am greedy Huntsville_secede , your cool with me my friend. I don`t think Huntsvillians don`t want the rest of the state to prosper. It`s just city pride just like the earlier post every body wants it in there metro who wouldn`t ? Huntsville_secede wants it in the Ville I want it in the Port, but we all want the state to prosper.

Oh yeah and why Huntsville the only big 4 with out a major interstate ?

[Southlander]

I-65 IS a major interstate.
When I-65 was being routed, Decatur had more political sway than Huntsville. Also, remember that major N/S & E/W railroad railroad lines intersect in Decatur, and there are major industrial-sized dock facilities in Decatur.
I-565 connects I-65 to Huntsville with ease.

[Bama`s Port]

I never knew that Decatur had a dock until I came to Huntsville for school. I thought the only city out side of Mobile in the state with an idusrtial sized dock or with any at all was Eufaula.


So in other words you are saying that Decatur was suppose to be bigger than Huntsville then right ?

[Huntsville_secede]

Originally Posted by Bama`s Port

I never knew that Decatur had a dock until I came to Huntsville for school. I thought the only city out side of Mobile in the state with an idusrtial sized dock or with any at all was Eufaula.


So in other words you are saying that Decatur was suppose to be bigger than Huntsville then right ?

Yeah at the time the Interstate system was planned it was thought that Decatur would remain larger than Huntsville, then the space program happened and Huntsville rapidly grew. What I said was Huntsville was not connected to the interstate system until the 565 spur was constructed in the late 80's early 90's. Nothing can change history even though Huntsville is much larger than Decatur today its not like 65 can be rerouted. There was really no way at the time they could have known Huntsville would grow so quick but it took the state so long to make up for this miscalculation. Because of this, until the late 80s Huntsville was the largest city in the United States completely removed from the interstate system. But I still think there is a need for an east-west expressway through North Alabama as of today there are a lot of populated towns traversing west to east ... Decatur Athens, Florence/Muscle Shoals area, Huntsville, Guntersville/Albertville and its a nightmare trying to drive east and south of Huntsville on 431. There are plans for this of course but it is of little priority to the state's interest.

[marmac]

Many posters are talking as if the auto plants are a new federal welfare program and thus should move to the area that can help the most people.

The auto plants are a business and will move to an area where they can " get the best deal" and still make the most profit.

[cpg35223]

Originally Posted by marmac

Many posters are talking as if the auto plants are a new federal welfare program and thus should move to the area that can help the most people.

The auto plants are a business and will move to an area where they can " get the best deal" and still make the most profit.

An excellent point. If Volkswagen wants to put their plant in downtown Birmingham or on an island in the middle of the Tennessee River, then so be it.

The Black Belt doesn't just get a plant by means of entitlement. It has to do the same things that Birmingham, Huntsville, and Mobile have done to attract industry: Have some kind of decent local government, infrastructure, and educated work force.

[Chrishaune]

Originally Posted by cpg35223

An excellent point. If Volkswagen wants to put their plant in downtown Birmingham or on an island in the middle of the Tennessee River, then so be it.

The Black Belt doesn't just get a plant by means of entitlement. It has to do the same things that Birmingham, Huntsville, and Mobile have done to attract industry: Have some kind of decent local government, infrastructure, and educated work force.

It's not the the blackbelt doesn't have "decent local government, infrastructure, and educated work force." Those are some hard working people in the blackbelt. I'm from the blackbelt and let me shed some light on the situation.

When you grow up in the Blackbelt, you grow up having to make a choice. Graduate high school and leave the area to further your education or stay in the area to work at a Wal-Mart Supercenter. I chose the former and I am now working on Redstone Arsenal in North Alabama. There is nothing to spur development in the Blackbelt because for so long the Blackbelt depended on agriculture as it's economic source. These days it doesn't take multitudes of people to work on farms so that left people to go and work the service jobs. Most of the Blackbelt is rural, but there are small towns scattered everywhere in it.

The problem is nobody from outside of Alabama and even from the major cities in Alabama knows about the Blackbelt and it's people. People see the it is an impoverished area and automatically think that the people down there are doing something wrong. NO, it's that there are not a lot of resources down there to get things done. If the state was to help out the area by attracting a auto plant to the area that would almost automatically change the economic climate of the area. The state of Alabama wouldn't be pulled down in as many statistics if there were more opportunities in the Blackbelt.

That is why I say the top two choices in Alabama for this plant, if it is put in the state, should be between Dothan and the Blackbelt.