By Paul Gattis
The city limits of Huntsville has jumped Interstate 65 for the first time.
The western boundary of the city pushed across the federal highway Thursday night after the city council unanimously approved the annexation of 30.38 on the north side of Bibb Garrett Road in Limestone County.
It’s a tangible sign of the city’s literal growth with the annexed land about 25 miles from downtown Huntsville. It also signals potential for more economic growth. The property is directly across I-65 from auto parts manufacturer BOCAR in SouthPoint Industrial Park and is linked to the park by Bibb Garrett Road. The land is just north of the I-565 interchange.
“We’ve got all the amenities there,” said Mayor Tommy Battle, referring to growth in the industrial park where the city installed sewer access. “With those amenities have come requests to shoot them right across (the interstate). With all the infrastructure there, it made sense.
“There are some industrial sites that might come in. The great thing about some of those industrial sites is property tax goes to the school system and the school system doesn’t end up having to educate children from that area. It’s part of our future expansion is going down that road and making sure that roadway system is also part of the transportation grid for the Limestone County area.”
Previously, the western boundary of the city limits stretched as far as I-65 in some places but it had not crossed the interstate. The annexed land is contiguous to land previously annexed into Huntsville.
The industrial park is also near the sprawling Mazda Toyota Manufacturing plant that’s expected to begin production later this year.
While Huntsville routinely annexes property, the jump across I-65 is notable in the same way as the jump across the Tennessee River into Morgan County at the Whitesburg Bridge in 2018 with the annexation of more than 600 acres.
“To me, it’s a big deal and I welcome them into the 5th,” said councilman John Meredith, who represents the 5th district in west Huntsville. “I’m looking forward to serving them. I know there’s nothing over there right now. But when they start putting things up, I’m going to be there for them.”
Both Battle and Meredith said they expect there could be industrial development planned for the annexed land.
“We haven’t heard the particular plans but the indications has been it would be industrial in that area,” Battle said.
Said Meredith, “I assume that there is but it’s still in the planning stages. You don’t annex something for no reason so I’m sure there’s something coming.”