Exploring North Alabama Exploring North Alabama - Huntsville ...

Great Things Do Comein Small PackagesAmenities abound in the Tennessee ValleyHuntsville lacksin size it makes up“Whatfor in brains: 31% ofthe population has a college degree(U.S. average, 24%),” noted ForbesMagazine in May 2004 when itranked Huntsville, Ala., numbereight in its sixth annual survey ofBest Places for Business andCareers. “We have a wealth of talentand labor availability in Huntsville/Madison County that is consistentlyone of our best selling points foreconomic development,” notedBrian Hilson, president of theChamber of Commerce of Huntsville/MadisonCounty. Of the top tenranked cities, Huntsville, with thesecond largest research park in thenation and the fourth largest in theworld, had the smallest population.The singular, high-tech job opportunitiesafforded by federal space anddefense agencies and the corporationssupporting them – such as TheBoeing Company, Lockheed-Martin,SAIC and a plethora of others –attract highly trained and educatedpeople from around the corner, thecountry and the world. A major influenceencouraging this wealth oftalent to stay, however, goes beyondprofessional growth. It’s the qualityof life in the Tennessee Valley thatcauses house-hunters to becomehome-sweet-home dwellers.“Once we develop or bring innew businesses, we want to makecertain they stay,” said Hilson. “TheHuntsville area offers tremendousbenefits to those who establish andgrow their businesses here, includingour geographic location, cost ofliving, arts organizations, downtownredevelopment efforts, responsivegovernment, education opportunities,and teamwork from communityleaders who make certain that ourquality of life features are preserved.It’s a truly complete package thatHuntsville/Madison County offers.The community’s ability to remain aleading economic driver for the statewill be a result of people workingtogether to continually create thatcomplete package. That’s reassuring,because teamwork is somethingHuntsville has done well fordecades.”This edition of Initiatives isdedicated to life in the TennesseeValley: arts and entertainment, theoutdoors, learning opportunities,and simply some of the things thatmake living here special. Emphasisis on the word some as it would takea much larger publication to includethe many benefits of life inHuntsville/Madison County.Initiatives October 200407