The Huntsville City Council met on Thursday, February 12, for its regularly scheduled meeting and during that time, made major progress toward two developments that will likely change the face of the city for the foreseeable future.

During the meeting, the council voted to approve the $6 billion development agreement with Eli Lilly and Company, along with a property transfer to the pharmaceutical company.

The council also awarded a contract for the Pinhook Creek pedestrian access and redevelopment corridor (PARC) project. The comprehensive flood mitigation and urban redevelopment effort includes the future Huntsville skybridge.

Shane Davis, the city’s director of urban and economic planning, said the Eli Lilly announcement represents the largest single economic development project in Alabama’s history.

Davis gave an overview of Huntsville’s successful bid for the facility, along with the project terms agreed upon by both the city and Eli Lilly.

Terms of the development agreement include:

Construction of a 750,000 sq. ft. facility with an investment of not less than $4.2 billion (Eli Lilly)
Hiring no less than 449 full-time employees (Eli Lilly)
Providing a 260-acre site to Eli Lilly under a 10-year performance obligation by the company to maintain its investment and the jobs at the facility. (The City of Huntsville)
Two million in funding for workforce development, recruitment, and training (The City of Huntsville)
Up to $250,000 in project costs (The City of Huntsville)

According to Davis, the pharmaceutical company evaluated multiple states and over 80 different potential community locations across the United States in search of its final location.

The City of Huntsville recently stated that the average salary for employees at the Huntsville Eli Lilly location will be $112,700, excluding benefits.

Davis pointed out that Huntsville’s ability to recruit, train, and sustain a skilled workforce helped distinguish the city from competing sites.

“All communities must have an available workforce and experience to show established workforce recruitment and development programs in place. We certainly have a track record of doing that,” Davis said.

Huntsville Mayor Tommy Battle said that Eli Lilly’s choice of Huntsville over more than 300 other sites will have a positive economic ripple effect across North Alabama.

“This project will also create 3,000 construction jobs, and we are looking forward to site work beginning later this year,” Battle said.

“It is time for our return on investment in this community. The council should be proud of years ago, allowing the city to have the vision to secure this property. It was a special piece of property. We knew it. We waited for the right project,” Davis noted.

The facility will be located at the northeast corner of Interstate 565 and Greenbrier Parkway.

The council awarded a $20 million dollar contract to Lambert Contracting LLC for the first phase of the Pinhook Creek PARC project.

Davis reminded the council that a competitive RAISE (Rebuilding American Infrastructure with Sustainability and Equity) grant the city won in 2022 covers $20 million of the cost, with the city contributing the remaining $92,000.

The city also approved an engineering design services contract with GTEC LLC for structural foundations for the Huntsville Skybridge, which will consist of three precast pedestrian bridges across Pinhook Creek. The bridges will be constructed during the fourth and final phase of the project.

Other items discussed during the meeting included two significant expansions to Huntsville’s greenway network and an option for the city to purchase approximately 516 acres of land along Highway 72 East.

The property is located adjacent to the Vulcan Materials quarry and is owned by Grassy Pond LP and Huntsville Center Inc.

If purchased, the land would potentially be used for commercial and industrial development.

The move mirrors the city’s long-term site-control strategy that helped secure the Eli Lilly project, allowing Huntsville to evaluate the property and market it for future job creation before committing to a purchase.

“Much of our success over the past decade has come from being prepared,” Battle said.

He continued, “Companies such as Meta, Polaris, Mazda Toyota, and Eli Lilly selected Huntsville because we had development-ready sites and could offer speed to market. This option allows us to continue that strategy.”