MONTGOMERY— Gov. Kay Ivey and Delta Regional Authority Chairman Chris Caldwell have announced a $372,425 grant to provide jobs and add new commerce in the Greene County city of Eutaw.
The funds from the DRA will provide infrastructure required for the construction of a Love’s Travel Stop and Country Store. The business will be located at Exit 40 (Alabama Highway 14) off Interstate 20/59 in Eutaw. It will employ 43 people.
“Creating new jobs and opening the way for commerce in Alabama’s Black Belt is not only a priority of my administration but a personal passion,” Ivey said. “I am pleased to support this project and pleased that the potential along that stretch of Interstate 20/59 is being realized.”
Love’s will be constructed on a 13.9-acre site and will include a convenience store, Hardee’s restaurant, tire shop and a fueling area with 14 gasoline pumps for automobile and eight fuel bays for trucks. The business will also have 84 truck parking spaces and three spaces for recreational vehicles.
The DRA funds will be combined with a $400,000 Community Development Block Grant awarded by Ivey in July to provide sewer services at the intersection by extending lines from the city of Eutaw.
“DRA’s investment in Eutaw will ensure new jobs and will improve economic development in Greene County,” DRA Chairman Chris Caldwell said. “This project is a great example of the investments we’re making across the region that engage our rural communities and grow our economy.”
The Alabama Department of Economic and Community Affairs administers both the DRA and CDBG programs in Alabama.
“The combination of CDBG and DRA funds enables Alabama communities to accomplish projects, like this sewer extension, that otherwise might not be possible,” ADECA Director Kenneth Boswell said. “I value of partnership with the Delta Regional Authority and, like Gov. Ivey, I am encouraged by this project.”
Delta Regional Authority is a federal-state partnership designed to help create jobs, build communities and improve lives in the areas of the eight states it serves. Twenty Alabama counties, including Greene County, are part of the DRA region and eligible for funding.
ADECA manages a range of programs that support law enforcement, economic development, recreation, energy conservation and water resource management.
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Contact: Jim Plott; Mike Presley