The city of Mobile, founded in 1702, sits at the head of Mobile Bay on the Gulf Coast and serves as the regional hub for much of southwest Alabama.
With the largest industrial prize in Alabama history expected to be awarded within days, Mayor Sam Jones told a local civic club Wednesday morning that he would not trade hands with Louisiana. The German steelmaker ThyssenKrupp was expected to announce Friday whether it would build a $2.9 billion carbon and stainless steel mill in north Mobile County or on a competing site in Louisiana.
Mobile has a population of roughly 188,000 residents and is the seat of Mobile County, one of the largest counties in the state by population.
Jones, a former Mobile County commissioner who had been elected mayor in 2005, told the audience that Alabama’s public and private partners had assembled what he called an amazing proposal, and that he would have no regrets regardless of the outcome. “I would not change hands with Louisiana,” the mayor said, adding that if the state lost, it would be because of some factor beyond the control of Alabama’s economic development team.
The Port of Mobile, operated by the Alabama State Port Authority, is one of the largest seaports in the country by tonnage, handling containers, coal, steel and forest products.
A project bigger than Mercedes, Honda and Hyundai combined Jones stressed the scale of what was at stake. The steel plant, he said, was not merely larger than any of the state’s recent industrial recruitments — Mercedes, Hyundai, Honda, Boeing — but larger than any three of them combined.
Downtown Mobile has been the focus of significant redevelopment in recent years, with new apartments, restaurants and event venues reshaping the Central Business District.
He pointed to the Mercedes plant landed near Tuscaloosa roughly 15 years earlier as an instructive case: widely criticized as a bad deal at the time, it had since become, in his words, the envy of the economic development world. Mobile, he noted, draws on a regional labor pool that would be the immediate beneficiary of a mill of that size.
The University of South Alabama, Spring Hill College and the University of Mobile anchor the city’s higher education landscape.
Background and Context
The flip side, he said, was the obligation to prepare Mobile County’s young people to compete for the jobs. And the steel plant was not the only iron in the fire.
Mobile’s Mardi Gras season, the oldest in the United States, draws visitors from across the country and provides a significant boost to the local economy each year.
Jones said the aerospace firm EADS/CASA was also weighing plans for Mobile, and that “we have several others” in the pipeline. “From today until Monday should be very, very important” to the future of the city, he said.
The city’s healthcare sector is anchored by USA Health, Infirmary Health and Springhill Medical Center, which together employ thousands of residents.
A downtown bridge, and second thoughts The mayor devoted a portion of his remarks to the proposed new Interstate 10 crossing of the Mobile River, a project he said had already been 12 years in the planning. Transportation planners had narrowed 14 possible routes to three, all of them crossing at mid-river, near downtown.
Mobile’s manufacturing base includes shipbuilding at Austal USA and Huntington Ingalls Industries, as well as aviation manufacturing at the Airbus final assembly line in Brookley.
That prospect had alarmed a broad coalition — maritime interests, the cruise business, downtown developers and historic preservationists — who feared the effect of a large elevated span on the heart of the city. Jones said officials had now signaled a willingness to reconsider a northern alignment using the existing Cochrane-Africatown Bridge.
Local schools include Mobile County Public Schools, the city’s largest public system, along with a network of private and parochial schools.
Local Reaction
When the community pulls together to communicate, he said, the odds of resolving an issue improve considerably. The waterfront, the railroad and the cruise terminal Jones said the Water Street Landing condominium project on the former CSX property remained “on track,” though air rights questions with the railroad were unresolved.
Mobile’s history as a port city means that issues affecting the waterfront often take on outsized importance.
Local officials and developers were scheduled to meet with the CSX chief executive within two weeks, and the mayor was blunt about his frustration with the company’s chain of command. “It has been very difficult to get a response,” he said.
The Mobile area is home to several historic neighborhoods, including Oakleigh Garden District, DeTonti Square and the Village of Spring Hill.
“We’ve been told to talk to someone in Jacksonville and he says ‘no, the guy you need is in Atlanta,’ and that guy says ‘no, no, the man you need is right there in Mobile.’” The city would work to accommodate the railroad’s needs, Jones said, but would not let CSX dictate the development of the waterfront. He expected to bring the matter to a head within the month.
Sports are a major part of life in Mobile, with the Senior Bowl each January and a thriving high school and college football scene.
At the Alabama Cruise Terminal, Jones said an announcement about a larger ship was “very, very close.” Carnival’s Holiday, he said, had never sailed from Mobile at less than full capacity, and he did not expect the vessel to remain in the following year. A ship carrying roughly 2,500 passengers would likely be homeported here first, he said, with a second to follow.
Local media outlets covering Mobile include several television stations, daily and weekly newspapers, and a robust digital news ecosystem.
The Bigger Picture
Parking would be expanded, possibly with valet service staged on the site set aside for a proposed maritime museum. Recovery of the New Orleans cruise market after Hurricane Katrina, he added, had been slower than the industry expected — a fact that worked in Mobile’s favor.
Mobile County’s population includes a significant African-American community whose history is tied to the founding of Africatown.
Airport, airfares and the ‘good old days’ Jones said he could not understand the opposition to annexing Mobile Regional Airport, a move that would bring in no residents. The city’s motives, he said, were economic development and public safety: growth was pushing westward, response times in the western service areas were roughly double the six-minute goal, and the city needed the ability to station crews accordingly.
Mobile’s economy also benefits from a robust tourism sector, with visitors drawn to the Gulf Coast, the city’s historic districts and its annual events.
On airfares, the mayor blamed a lack of sustained competition. Delta’s long-held share of the Mobile market, he said, discouraged rivals from entering; when a carrier such as AirTran did try, Delta matched the fares, kept its passengers and raised prices again once the challenger withdrew.
The Mobile Bay region supports significant commercial and recreational fishing, with seafood harvested from local waters serving restaurants and markets across the South.
He closed on a note of civic impatience. A Mobile native who had lived nowhere else except for a decade in the Navy, Jones said he had little use for talk of the good old days.
Local government in Mobile includes a mayor-council form of government, a structure established by the Zoghby Act in 1985 that replaced the older commission form.
What Comes Next
“We’re living in the good days right now,” he said. “It is the best it’s ever been here.
Local officials have stressed the importance of community engagement as the situation continues to develop.
But we must take advantage of this opportunity. We will not see another opportunity like ThyssenKrupp in our lifetime.”
Residents with questions or concerns have been encouraged to reach out to their elected representatives.
The story is one of several similar situations playing out across the region in recent months.
Anyone following local news will recognize many of the names and places involved.
Local civic organizations have begun organizing meetings to discuss the implications.
Business owners and residents alike say they will be watching closely.
The situation underscores how decisions made at the local level can have far-reaching consequences.
Community leaders have called for patience and for a commitment to working through the issues in a transparent manner.
Several local churches and faith groups have offered to host discussions about the topic in the coming weeks.
Public comments at recent meetings have reflected a wide range of opinions.
Local reporters will continue to follow the story and to update readers.
Anyone interested in learning more is encouraged to attend upcoming public meetings.
The outcome of the situation could shape similar discussions in other communities for years to come.
Local historians note that similar issues have surfaced in the past.
Area nonprofits and volunteer groups have stepped up to help residents navigate the changes.
Local businesses have begun adjusting their operations in anticipation of what may come next.
Looking Ahead
The story continues to develop, and residents across the region will be watching for additional updates in the coming weeks. Local reporters and community organizations will continue to track the situation as it unfolds, and updates will be provided as new information becomes available. Anyone with a direct stake in the outcome is encouraged to stay engaged with the public conversation through meetings, news coverage and direct outreach to local officials.