Cullman County saw nearly $100 million in capital investments during 2024 from both new industries and expansions of companies well established in the area.

The city of Cullman led the charge in industry expansion with a total of more than $70 million invested from local companies to expand facilities or upgrade equipment.

The most significant investment came from REHAU Automotive, which unveiled a new $53 million paint line in August. The new line included the renovation of an existing 72,000 square feet and a new addition around 22,000 square feet and was expected to create roughly 50 new jobs.

The new line was needed in order to fulfill a production contract with Mercedes for a new electric vehicle line. During a ribbon cutting ceremony for the new facility, Gov. Kay Ivey commented on the close relationship between REHAU and Mercedes and the way it has benefitted Alabama’s continued growth in the automotive manufacturing industry.

“It’s a pleasure to be here today to celebrate another remarkable milestone for REHAU Automotive and the state of Alabama. REHAU was the first automotive supplier to follow Mercedes here to Alabama and it was a decision that helped transform our state into an automotive production powerhouse,” Ivey said.

One particular expansion in Cullman County which is poised to drive a significant amount of revenue into the area was a nearly $6 million investment from Wagon Trail Hemp Farm in Good Hope as it prepares for Alabama’s Medical Cannabis rollout.

Having operated as an established producer of hemp-based products since 2019, Wagon Trail was awarded one of only five integrated medical cannabis licenses in 2023. The license allows Wagon Trail to control the entire medical cannabis process, from cultivating to production and dispensing, in house.

While civil court proceedings have delayed the program’s rollout so far, the Alabama Court of Civil Appeals recently gave the Alabama Cannabis Commission the green light to continue the licensing process. Wagon Trail CEO Joey Robertson previously told The Times that if everything continues to go smoothly, the facility could be ready for operations as early as three to four months.

“I’m so thankful for the many industries that are here tonight,” Dale Greer, Cullman Economic Development Agency Director told those attending the annual Industry Appreciation reception at Terri Pines in February. “You know, the jobs you create, the capital investment in these communities, and the goods and services that you demand to support your company. … I give y’all credit for where we are as a community today, people follow jobs. When you have jobs, you have the ability to get to everything else.”

To both accommodate current industry growth and prepare for additional expansion in the future, the city of Cullman and the Cullman County Commission signed off on upgrades and expansions for the Cullman Regional Airport.

Airport director Ben Harrison said the airport has been in a “reconstruction and maintenance phase” for the last 10 years which has largely focused on renovating runways, taxiways and hangars. He said the engineering contracts with Goodwyn, Mills and Cawood to design future hangars and reconstruct the airports existing apron — the area where aircraft’s are parked, loaded, refueled and maintained — would allow the next 10 years to be focused on growth.

“It’s a really exciting time at the airport right now,” Harrison said. “We just finished an airport layout plan and for the next 10 years we should really be advancing in the growth of the airport to keep up with the demand of the aircraft that are trying to come here with the businesses, etc.”

Harrison said in addition to the larger apron, there are plans to construct an additional taxiway leading to a undeveloped 19 acre parcel of land to the west where future hangars will be located.