BY SARAH STEPHENS
ELMORE/AUTAUGA NEWS
Top Photo: A former residence, this building will soon become Millbrook’s first Arts Center. (Photo by Danae Morgan)
Property located on 3560 Grandview Road in Millbrook is going to see a lot of renovations in the coming months, but when complete it will be a new Arts Center for the city.
The home and property were purchased by the City of Millbrook and are located in an area that is a bright spot for future development. For years now, city officials have talked about rejuvenating the downtown area. In actuality, they are creating one, and their work over the years is beginning to bear fruit.
Danae Morgan, who was recently hired by the city as the Cultural Arts and Special Events director, is extremely excited about what the Arts Center could mean for the city.
Morgan said the house is structurally sound and has “good bones.” The majority of renovations will be on the interior, making modifications to allow for activity areas. While there is no set schedule or list of what those activities will be, Morgan said she would love to see things like pottery and art classes which are on her dream list. She would like to be able to have classrooms, a meeting space for the creative community and an art gallery to showcase area children and adult artists.
All of this comes after the city initially considered demolishing the old home. They say Morgan gets a lot of credit for changing their minds, as she shared her vision of what the former homeplace could become in the grand scheme of the downtown plan. Initial costs for renovations were approved recently by the City Council for $$47,500.
With the proximity to Village Green Park, City Hall, the Economic Development and Chamber office, the Civic Center, the Millbrook Public Library, Kid’s Kingdom and the soon to be expanded Creekwalk, she says the potential is “amazing.”
There has been a general plan for many years to bring more life to downtown Millbrook, but it has a lot of moving parts.
The city council passed ordinances for all of Millbrook that sets high standards for how a new build should look. A great example of that is the new Dollar General on Main Street, which adhered to a color and design scheme to fit into the city’s plan. That same ordinance also gives bigger and stronger teeth to deal with overgrown and weeded lots throughout the city.
Along the way, the city has purchased several pieces of property along Grandview Road and Main Street to help that vision eventually come into focus. Officials say they have played a game of Monopoly, in one aspect, by acquiring key properties for the long-range plan.
For instance, it was recently announced that the WELCOME Food Pantry on Main Street, which the city purchased three years ago, will be relocated and rebuilt to where the old Police Station now sits on Grandview Road. The old police station will be demolished to make way for the new WELCOME Center. The City was awarded a $500,000 grant to help in the funding of the new construction. It will be operated by the WELCOME Food Pantry organization, but the land was donated by the city.
The Millbrook Senior Center celebrated its grand opening earlier this year on city-owned property also on Grandview Road.
The city bought a former bank on Main Street, remodeled it, and today it is the “new” City Hall. The former city hall now houses the Economic Development Office and the Millbrook Area Chamber of Commerce.
Improvements have been made at Village Green Park and Minnie Massie Park.
The current walking path along Mill Creek and Village Green was approved for major expansion in the near future and will include grants made available to the city as well as city funds. Once complete, the trail will bring together the Village Green and cross Edgewood Road along the creek.
“It is really an exciting time to see what the future holds, and a plan come together,” said City Council President Michael Gay.
The hope is to create a downtown that is a hub of arts, outdoor activities, restaurants, an entertainment district and central location for many services. A mural project was announced last year by the city as well, and two murals are already showing off their colors along Main Street. The first was painted on the WELCOME Food Pantry, and the second is seeing finishing touches on Advanced Appraisal. More are to come in the future, so stay tuned.
Consider that Millbrook was not incorporated officially until 1977. The history of the area goes back a lot further, and it is hoped that a light can shine on that history, which is relatively unknown.
Many newer residents don’t know an original train line and depot were located on Edgewood Road. An original post office was in the same area, as well as a general store. The first school was located where the Millbrook First United Methodist church stands today on Edgewood. That property was donated by early Alabama pioneer Bolling Hall. The home he built in 1818, known as “Ellerslie,” still stands off of Edgewood Road and is listed on the historical registry. It has remained in the Hall family all of these years.
There is definitely a lot of history that predates the creation of the official city, that also takes in what was known as the Robinson Springs community. We will have more on that in the future.
