Montevallo Puts The Pieces Together As An Alabama Community Of Excellence

By Cary Estes

Separately, the pieces of a jigsaw puzzle are nothing more than bits of randomly shaped cardboard. But when the pieces join through a coordinated effort, they transform into a beautiful picture.

That has been the case for the city of Montevallo in recent years, ever since graduating from the Alabama Communities of Excellence (ACE) program in 2009. About 40 miles south of Birmingham, Montevallo has long had many of the pieces needed for a thriving community: charming shops, a public liberal arts university, magnificent old homes, picturesque parks, a vibrant arts scene and historical attractions such as The American Village, a Colonial-era reproduction.

Seemingly the only thing missing was an organized plan to pull all the elements together. That has changed with the assistance of ACE, which works with smaller communities throughout the state to help them develop the programs and tools needed to ensure long-term success.“ACE provided us with a platform to consolidate our vision as a community,” second-term Montevallo Mayor Hollie Cost said. “They brought us together to develop a strategic plan, and then we had direction. We had a real path for moving forward, so we were able to clearly define our goals as a community.”

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