West Alabama Chamber Reopens Renovated Workforce Center Downtown

More than 200 business leaders and community partners turned out Thursday for the reopening of the West Alabama Workforce and Community Development Center, the downtown Tuscaloosa building the local Chamber of Commerce has spent months renovating.

The Chamber and West Alabama Works cut the ribbon at the 2222 9th Street building Thursday afternoon in a ceremony thankfully held indoors to escape the extreme heat.

The Center operates as a shared hub for workforce development across the region, linking businesses, job seekers and community organizations with training and resources.

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Elizabeth Winter, a senior vice president and wealth advisor at Regions Bank, spoke about its history as a former branch, complete with an armored vault that now serves as a conference room.

She said the building was far larger than what Regions needed for modern banking. After hearing about a shared space for workforce development and nonprofits that Chamber officials had seen and envied in Lexington, Kentucky, she and the bank decided their space was a great fit for something similar in Tuscaloosa.

Now, nearly 10 years after those first conversations, Regions is operating in a smaller, newly built bank nearby and the Chamber's Center is up and running after its extensive renovations.

"These renovations represent an important investment in the future of workforce and community development in West Alabama," said Kyle South, president and CEO of the Chamber. "It was exciting to welcome so many members of our community into the Center and give them the opportunity to experience the improvements firsthand. This facility will allow us to better serve our businesses, workforce partners and community for years to come."

The renovations focused on upgrades to meeting and event space, plus the installation of large-scale screen displays donated by a local company, and those spaces can now be reserved by Chamber members for business meetings, trainings, receptions, and community events.

More information is available by emailing alicia@westalabamachamber.com.

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