In response to some discussion about the procedure for the Pell City Board of Education requesting funds from the City of Pell City, we would like to be clear. The process begins and ends with the Superintendent for Pell City Schools, who submits requests on behalf of the PCBOE. A request is made, and it is either approved or denied.
There are three documents attached to this post. The first is the original agenda for the PCBOE for a Called Meeting of Sept. 5, 2024. The second is an agenda that has been edited post-meeting, and the third is a request for funding from the PCBOE to the City Council.
The text highlighted in bold in the second agenda implies that City funding for PCBOE contracts has already been committed. Please be aware that the third document is the request for funding, which was hand-delivered to the Council by the Superintendent. It has yet to be approved.
It is anticipated the Council will approve this request for funding, as it has in the past. The third document also discloses last year’s requests from the BOE / Superintendent Martin, which the Council approved in an effort to show its continued support for the Board.
But it is also important to note that the Superintendent is requesting these funds on top of the more than $5 million that the City annually commits to the Board. These funds are discretionary, meaning the Board has full control of how they are spent.
As it has shown in years past, the Council is in full financial support of the students and teachers who drive this system. But it relies on the Board to determine how its contributions can be most impactful.
In July 2024, the City of Pell City celebrated the installation of 20 black, cast-iron benches and 11 matching litter containers along Cogswell Ave. – the final piece of a years-long Downtown Improvement Project.
These new, modern benches were made possible through a contribution from the Rotary Club of Pell City. They join other significant improvements installed along Cogswell Ave., Comer Ave., and 19th Street including new sidewalks and curbs, planters, and streetlights.
Pell City Rotarians met on the corner of 19th St. and Cogswell Ave. to celebrate the installation of new benches in downtown Pell City. The Rotary Club of Pell City contributed $20,000 toward the purchase and installation. From left are: Immediate Past President Serge Brazzolotto, Secretary Emily Norris, City Council member and Sergeant-at-Arms Jay Jenkins, Jaxon Phillips, Steve Talley, President-Elect Brian Muenger, and President Kelly Furgerson.
Rotary Past-President Serge Brazzolotto, who led the Club from July 2023 through June 2024, initially saw the value of transforming the City’s historic downtown into a more vibrant and walkable space. He spearheaded the club’s involvement.
“It was Rotary’s goal to provide the people of Pell City with something that enhanced their experience downtown,” Brazzolotto said. “These benches will be used daily, and our Club is proud to help improve our community in such a meaningful way.”
Pell City Rotary President Kelly Furgerson and Immediate Past President Serge Brazzolotto led the effort to involve the Club in the City of Pell City’s Downtown Streetscape Improvement Project.
Total cost of the benches and litter containers was approximately $40,000. Rotary committed to assisting the City with the expense by contributing half the cost – more than $20,000.
This contribution is part of the Rotary Club of Pell City’s 50th Anniversary Celebration. The Club, founded in 1974, marked a half century of community service this year, and each bench is branded with a badge that recognizes the Club’s decades of “Service Above Self.”
“Rotary sends a tremendous thanks to the City for the vision and effort that went into improving our downtown,” Rotary President Kelly Furgerson said. “We’re excited to celebrate our 50th anniversary alongside this major accomplishment.”
The City of Pell City’s Downtown Streetscape Improvement Project dates back to June 2020, when the City applied for an Alabama Department of Transportation TAP Grant, which stands for “Transportation Alternatives Program.”
The grant request was for $640,000 to remedy ADA non-compliant sidewalks in the downtown area. The City provided local matching funds of approximately $500,000, including landscaping and lighting costs, as well as engineering and inspection fees.
Streetscape Improvements completed by the City with the assistance of the TAP Grant included the corner of 19th St. and Cogswell Ave. (above), and the corner of 20th St. and Cogswell. Ave. “Before” photos from the City’s grant submission.
In August 2023, the City awarded a bid for construction to Taylor Corporation of Oxford for approximately $830,000. Taylor Corp. completed their portion of the project in June.
Installation of the Rotary benches was the final piece. They were installed in July by the Pell City Street Department under the supervision of Greg Gossett and Blake Nixon.
“We are grateful to ALDOT for recognizing this need and helping us transform downtown Pell City,” Muenger said. “Punctuating it with a gift of this scale from Rotary is what truly makes this a community project, and one that we hope residents will appreciate for years to come.”
During this time, local and State of Alabama sales taxes will be waived at retailers in the City limits, giving shoppers the opportunity to purchase certain school supplies, computers, and clothing for less than other times during the year.
For more, contact the State of Alabama Sales and Use Tax Division at (334) 242-1490 or (866) 576-6531.
Eligible clothing: Includes all human wearing apparel suitable for general use. This is not an all-inclusive list. $100 or less, per article of clothing.
City officials joined State of Alabama and company representatives on June 11 to celebrate a $23.5 million expansion of the Allied Mineral Products, LLC plant in Pell City. The new construction will add a 200,000-square-foot production facility, doubling the size of the plant, and add 13 manufacturing jobs to the local workforce.
During a speech to the crowd at the groundbreaking ceremony, Mayor Bill Pruitt noted that the company only arrived in Pell City in 2019. Doubling the size of its local facility in only 6 years is a testament to the quality of the local workforce, he said.
“It says a lot about us as a community,” Pruitt told the audience of State and local officials and company representatives. “We are proud to have you here, and we look forward to seeing you grow, prosper, and bring more employees into the Allied family.”
Pell City Mayor Bill Pruitt speaks to the audience during the Allied Mineral Products groundbreaking ceremony on June 11, 2024.
Allied Mineral first came to St. Clair County in 2017 with its acquisition of Riverside Refractories, Inc. Allied opened the Pell City production facility in August 2019.
“The reason you’re here validates that we’re doing something right that makes for a great workforce,” St. Clair Commission Chair Stan Batemon told the audience during the ceremony.
St. Clair Commission Chairman Stan Batemon addresses local, State, and company officials at the Allied Mineral production facility in Pell City on June 11, 2024.
Allied Mineral President and CEO Paul Jamieson noted that the expansion will increase the company’s number of full-time jobs at the facility to more than 100. He said thanks to the quality of Pell City’s workforce and the local support, the company’s growth in Alabama has been faster than planned.
“We are excited to be expanding our facility so soon and are confident this will help us to continue that growth,” Jamieson said.
From left, Mayor Bill Pruitt, Allied Mineral President & CEO Paul Jamieson, Council member Ivi McDaniel, Allied Mineral Chairman Jon R. Tabor, and City Manager Brian Muenger. The entirety of the gravel area pictured will soon be transformed into a 200,000-square-foot production facility.
According to officials, the company can produce more than 1,000 different products at the Pell City plant, which are primarily types of heat-resistant coatings for industrial use. Allied’s products are used everywhere from smelting ladles to rocket launchpads.
Construction on the new facility, now under way, will be completed in late 2025. In addition to the new building, the expansion will include installation of new manufacturing equipment including cranes, drying ovens and mixers. Allied will increase the facility’s production capacity, improve efficiency, prepare it for growth and increase its ability to serve the company’s Southern regions.
Besides Pell City, Allied has U.S. locations in Brownsville, Texas and Columbus, Ohio, where it is headquartered. The company also has facilities in Canada, South America, Europe, India, China, and South Africa.
The City of Pell City is excited to announce that popular restaurants Outback Steakhouse and Whataburger will soon join the impressive selection of retailers at Pell City Square.
Construction is underway at both sites, and the City anticipates both will be open to the public before the close of 2024. The new restaurants will be located on the west side of the Pell City Square development, with Outback on the northwest corner parcel next to Ross Dress for Less.
“The arrivals of Outback Steakhouse and Whataburger fulfill a key promise made by this administration to attract high-quality dining for our residents as part of the Pell City Square development,” Pell City Mayor Bill Pruitt said. “These businesses bring not only exciting new options but also create significant economic opportunities through job creation and increased local investment.”
The addition of these beloved national chains brings the Pell City Square closer to completion. The project, which sits on the site of the former St. Clair County Hospital, was announced in 2022. It contained four outparcels that would be developed separately from the primary retail component.
The additions of Outback and Whataburger mean all City-controlled parcels are committed. Only two outparcels totaling 3.44 acres remain on the east side of the site, both controlled by Bill Ellison, president of I-20 Development.
Outback will have 187 seats in the restaurant with a maximum occupancy of 210. Combined with Whataburger, the new restaurants are expected to add approximately $3 million in annual taxable income to Pell City’s economy.
The Pell City Square development was initially projected to generate $25 million in taxable sales. Revised figures following an immensely successful holiday season in 2023 now project that figure to be higher.
“We’re expecting that the Pell City Square’s taxable sales for 2024 will surpass original projections by around 20 percent,” Pell City City Manager Brian Muenger said. “When we include the new restaurants, taxable sales are likely to exceed $33 million annually.
“Not only do these figures show our City has been successful in capturing local spending that would otherwise travel to competing markets, but it also provides the City with a significant boost in its ability to provide services and amenities for current and future residents.”
Pell City Square is located off I-20 Exit 158 on Dr. John Haynes Drive in Pell City. The 148,000 square foot retail space features Hobby Lobby, Ulta, Pet Smart, Ross Dress for Less, TJ Maxx, Old Navy, America’s Best Eye Care and Five Below.
