Lighted exit will help Jemison grow

Published 2:52 pm Tuesday, November 3, 2009

By The North Chilton Advertiser staff

Significant growth has long been expected for Jemison, and hints of it have been seen.
Picture the people, subdivisions, parking lots and shopping centers—but most importantly money and economic opportunity—creeping down Interstate 65 from Birmingham. Had the growth arrived at night, however, it might have passed Jemison right on by because the city’s Interstate exit is the only one between Birmingham and Montgomery that is not lighted. That is no longer a concern because a project to erect lights at Exit 219 is underway and should be completed in in the next couple of months.
“Since the lighting has gone up, we have already had one business to commit, and a second business will possibly locate there,” Jemison Mayor Eddie Reed said.
Jemison’s Interstate exit must become a bigger asset in order for the city to grow, and the lighting, which cost $899,857 and is being paid for by a state grant, is a major step in the right direction.