One of Haleyville\u2019s most recent accomplishments is being among the 10 cities accepted into this year\u2019s Cool\u00a0&
\nConnected program, which helps small towns improve their broadband capability and use it to promote
\neconomic development. Officials are receiving planning assistance from several federal partners along with the nonprofit organization Smart Growth America.
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\u201cTransportation isolation can be a big challenge in a rural community. And one of the best ways to overcome
\nthat is investment in communications technology,\u201d said Nathan Willingham, director of Planning\u00a0&
\nTransportation for the Northwest Alabama Council of Local Governments.
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The Cool\u00a0& Connected program helps cities create contacts with a series of organizations that can assist in
\nsolving issues involving broadband connectivity. It basically gives Haleyville the initial boost to work with the
\ncorrect agencies and develop a long-range plan.
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\u201cCool & Connected will provide Haleyville with an assessment of their existing conditions, resource space and
\nchallenges, and then offer strategies that can help them overcome some of those gaps,\u201d said Willingham, who
\nhelped write the city\u2019s Cool\u00a0& Connected grant proposal. \u201cIt will provide ways for Haleyville to have better,
\nfaster, less expensive broadband service to more people.\u201d
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Also this year, the city opened the new Haleyville Sports Complex. The multimillion-dollar facility includes
\nfour baseball\/softball fields, two soccer fields, batting cages, a walking trail, a playground and a 300-space
\nparking lot, with long-range plans to add an amphitheater to the 51-acre site.
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\nNot only does the sports complex enhance quality of life for Haleyville\u2019s residents, but city leaders look at it as
\nan economic investment. The city plans to hold multiday youth tournaments on the fields, which will bring in
\nvisitors and possibly entice a national hotel chain to\u00a0build in Haleyville.
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\u201cWith these tournaments, we\u2019re going to have a lot of teams coming into Haleyville. At a minimum, they will
\nbuy gas and food while they\u2019re here,\u201d said Will Walker, president of Traders\u00a0& Farmers Bank and of the
\nHaleyville Area Chamber of Commerce. \u201cWe\u2019re also hoping that it will kick-start the possibility of getting a
\nnational hotel chain when they see that we\u2019re bringing this many folks into the community. There\u2019s just so
\nmuch positive spill-off from getting a national chain hotel. It creates jobs and lodging-tax revenue.\u201d
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Creative Teamwork<\/strong><\/p>\n Haleyville has been creative in using grants and other sources of outside funding to help pay for several recent That is quite a statement considering all that Haleyville has done in recent years, such as working with the Other accomplishments including using grants to help solve a serious flooding problem on Alabama Highway In addition to developing partnerships with outside entities, Haleyville officials have stressed the importance of having various groups within the city work together as well. An example is a community health assessment that Lakeland Community Hospital conducted in 2016 with assistance from the mayor and several business leaders. \u201cThey helped us identify the biggest health needs in our area,\u201d Lakeland CEO Debbie Pace said. \u201cAs an organization, the hospital is always looking to the community for guidance and direction. Because having a healthy community supports economic development.\u00a0\u201cWe all work together as a team in Haleyville. That\u2019s evident in how we carry out our business every day. Our community is engaged in the future growth and retention of services, businesses and talent to the area. It\u2019s just a team effort.\u201d Part of that effort is taking place through adult and junior leadership programs. Haleyville was the first ACE \u201cThese leadership programs have been really good for the city,\u201d Haleyville ACE coordinator Melinda Weaver
\nprojects. For example, instead of attempting a costly renovation of the aging City Hall building, officials instead
\nsold the facility to CVS Pharmacy and used the money toward building a new City Hall, fire station and water
\nboard facility. The City Hall complex includes a tornado shelter that can hold up to 400 people, a potential life-
\nsaving addition that Sunseri said he is \u201cmore proud of than anything else we\u2019ve done.\u201d
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\nAlabama Department of Economic and Community Affairs (ADECA) to help the Kith Furniture manufacturer
\nobtain a $2 million loan (which the company has already paid back) to expand its operations. This enabled Kith
\nto increase its number of employees from 180 to more than 600.
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\n13 as it cuts through town; make water, sewer and paving improvements in two residential subdivisions; and
\nbuild enclosed hangars at the Haleyville airport.
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\ncommunity to add a junior program, which includes a three-day course (funded with an Appalachian Regional
\nCommission grant) in which students identify problems and work together to come up with solutions. This gives students an idea of what is involved in community development.
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\nsaid. \u201cWe had 20 people in our most recent adult leadership program. It\u2019s great to pull these folks together and see how interested they are in our city and learning more about how they can be a part of making decisions and volunteering. \u201cThings like that are a direct result of our partnership with ACE. It makes a difference when folks learn more about what can be done and all the avenues that are out there. Our citizen involvement is great,\u201d she said. \u201cWe are developing a group of dedicated leaders who are willing to volunteer their time to help make the city grow.\u201d
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