Whether you have been in Huntsville all your life or only a year or so, we are all aware of the rapid growth here in Rocket City. Known for the development of military and space technology, Huntsville’s rapid growth has made historic news by surpassing Birmingham as the largest city in Alabama. As such, we wanted to take a moment to showcase some of the new businesses and attractions coming to Huntsville.
Government and Technology Additions to Huntsville
Much of Huntsville’s growth is due to the new growth in military, government, and technological moves. Three Major additions in this sphere are the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), The School of Cyber Technology, and Space Force.
FBI
The FBI is building a new campus on the Redstone Arsenal. This multi-year project’s (set to be complete in 2026) goal is to “enhance operations and create synergies between [the] FBI program areas that are all currently spread out geographically and functionally — and also create resiliency and continuity of operations should an outage or a catastrophic event occur in the national capital region…” said Terry Wade, executive associate director for criminal and cyber at the bureau. Journalist Nicole Ogrysko wrote an article on the events surrounding the FBI coming to Huntsville, you can read the rest of the article here.
School of Cyber Technology
The new school of Cyber and Technology welcomed its first class in Fall of 2020. While the physical school building is still being developed (it is scheduled to be completed in 2022), the students are currently meeting at Oakwood University. With the ever-rising awareness of the importance of cyber security, this school is developing a new cybersecurity workforce which has potential to supply much needed to support to the industry. To read more about this astounding new development in higher education, visit AL.com.
Space Force
The US Space Command’s Headquarters is moving from Peterson Air Force Base in Colorado Springs, Colorado to the Redstone Arsenal here in Huntsville. Though a controversial topic, this move to Huntsville will add to the ever growing military and space presence in Huntsville. According to the Space Force Website, The Secretary of the Air Force Public Affairs stated, “Huntsville compared favorably across more…factors than any other community, providing a large, qualified workforce, quality schools, superior infrastructure capacity, and low initial and recurring costs. Additionally, Redstone Arsenal offered a facility to support the headquarters, at no cost, while the permanent facility is being constructed.”
While Huntsville is the chosen location, “The Department of the Air Force anticipates making a final decision for the location of U.S. Space Command Headquarters in spring 2023, pending the results from the required environmental impact analysis.”
Other Additions to Huntsville
While Huntsville has been known as the Hub for all things space, the city is striving to establish and welcome a new community outside of technology. In recent years, Huntsvillians have seen a rise in craft coffee shops, festivals, art exhibits and fairs, music, flower farms, etc. Huntsville is quickly becoming THE city to come to for a day of fun! We have listed just a few of the new attractions coming to Huntsville:
- Zoological Park, Aquarium in Limestone County
- Hotels, Eateries, Mid-City, Parks (Huntsville just got a Cheesecake Factory and a Trader Joes)
- Huntsville Amphitheater
- Skate Park
The Huntsville Chamber of Commerce is a vital piece in welcoming new business to Huntsville, and they have created the following video to introduce our growing city of Huntsville’s Legacy.
