Cullman County ranks in top five for job growth in Alabama

Mar. 28—Cullman County was ranked among the top five counties for both job creation and capital investment last year according to a new report from the Alabama Department of Commerce.

According to the 2023 New and Expanding Industry Report, $489 million in new investments were made in Cullman County in 2023 which resulted in 643 new jobs created. In total Alabama saw 8,095 jobs tied to 184 projects in 43 counties last year.

To those most familiar with the state of local industry, the announcement should come as now surprise. Recently Cullman Economic Development director Dale Greer said 2023 marked the county's biggest ever in terms of attracting private industrial capital. This continues the county's recent trend of breaking the previous year's records each year.

"You can see how significant the growth has been in the past couple of years and if you go back 10 years, industry has invested more than $1.7 billion in this county and created over 5,300 jobs,"

Other key takeaways from the report include:

* Many of the new jobs are being created in strategically key industrial sectors. This includes over 1,700 new positions in the automotive industry, almost 1,000 in metals and advanced materials manufacturing, and nearly 700 in information technology.

* Rural Alabama continues to act as a magnet for growing businesses, as the state's "targeted" counties attracted $1.7 billion in new capital investment during 2023, along with more than 1,700 job commitments.

* Foreign direct investment, or FDI, provided a dynamic spark to Alabama's economy last year. Companies from South Korea, Germany, Sweden and elsewhere combined to invest nearly $3 billion in the state during 2023, contributing almost 3,400 new jobs.

In a press release from Gov. Kay Ivey's office Tuesday, she states the new or expanding facilities detailed in the report are predicted to total of $6.4 billion statewide which she said should only continue to grow in the future thanks to the passage of her "Game Plan" package of economic development bills last year.

Ivey also noted that she has tasked Commerce Secretary Ellen McNair with developing a new, comprehensive economic development strategy no later than October 1.

"Technology is ever-changing and we need to be prepared for what's next in a world moving at digital speed," Ivey said in the release. " We need new strategies and bold approaches that keep us in the drivers' seat for the next 10 years and beyond."

With several global and domestic brands such as the high-end German appliance manufacturer Miele and the California-based Sierra Pacific choosing to relocate a portion of their operations to Alabama, McNair said she believed the state was up to that task.

"I'm confident that we're helping build a more dynamic economy that spreads opportunity far and wide across the state," McNair said. "While we still have a lot of work to do, we have the tools needed for the job, and we're fully committed to creating 21st Century jobs across Alabama."