Here is today's summary of economic development news, a free service of the Economic Development Partnership of Alabama, representing Alabama's private sector investment in economic development. If you enjoy NewsFlash, thank an
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Huntsville mayor leads effort to pass Alabama's 21st Century Manufacturing Zone Act
ON OCTOBER 27, 2016
Huntsville Mayor Tommy Battle is leading a statewide effort to garner voter support for Amendment 11 on the upcoming Nov. 8 ballot.
"Simply put, Amendment 11 means jobs and economic growth for Alabama," said Battle.
The constitutional amendment, unanimously approved by the Alabama Senate and House of Representatives, is designed to help Alabama's cities secure major industrial projects. Battle is championing the amendment because of Huntsville's recent success in recruiting 16,000 new jobs with companies like Polaris, Remington, and GE Aviation.
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Opportunities open for women in manufacturing, leaders say
on October 26, 2016
There were times raising kids that Carolyn Minerich had to look in a drawer and find her old Marine Corps commission certificate.
The commitments in time and attention being a mother meant she didn't even have time to take a shower, yet she knew she had handled a complicated job on a general's staff. Eventually, she would run her own Alabama-based company.
Her story was like several others heard by high school students at Girls Employed in Manufacturing Day today at the Bevill Center on the campus of Gadsden State Community College
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UAH and HudsonAlpha collaborate to study nature's genetic bounty
When GeneCapture bore fruit as the $100,000 winner of Alabama Launchpad's inaugural LEAP Alumni Startup Competition, the roots of that achievement grew in the special collaborative relationship The University of Alabama in Huntsville (UAH) has with Huntsville's HudsonAlpha Institute for Biotechnology.
GeneCapture, founded by UAH professor and interim chair of the Department of Chemical & Materials Engineering Dr. Krishnan Chittur with two others, has its offices at HudsonAlpha. The company's team of chemical engineers, molecular biologists, physicists and entrepreneurs is developing a portable instrument to screen for dozens of pathogens within an hour, for less than $20.
"GeneCapture's mission is to change the current paradigm in infection detection, and so the technologies we are developing include elements from molecular biology, biochemistry, bioinformatics and biological sensing," Dr. Chittur says.
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Pizitz project providing lift to Birmingham tech community
Author Dawn Azok/Made In Alabama
October 28, 2016
BIRMINGHAM, Alabama - A new downtown Birmingham development that mixes residential and office space with innovative food offerings and a community gathering spot is poised to become another boost for the city's thriving tech sector.
Bayer Properties' $66 million redevelopment of the historic Pizitz department store is in its final stages, with the first residents expected to begin moving in around late November or early December.
Along with 143 apartments, the project will include 11,000 square feet of office space and The Pizitz Food Hall, which was called a "
foodie's heaven " by The New York Tim
DeKalb and Jackson counties get $2.2 million in grants
Gov. Robert Bentley Wednesday announced seven Community Development Block Grants for DeKalb and Jackson counties during a visit to Northeast Alabama Community College in Rainsville.
The money will be used to replace sewer lines and improve road conditions to speed economic development for the northeast Alabama region.
"Without CDBG funding, typical improvement projects would be too costly for many communities to attempt without borrowing money or reducing existing services or programs," Bentley said in a statement.
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