Malia Riggs
Elmore Autauga News
Photos by Malia Riggs and Prattville Area Chamber of Commerce
The Prattville Area Chamber of Commerce hosted a ribbon cutting event at The Mill in downtown Prattville this morning where numerous elected officials, the developers, current residents and members of the community were present for the monumental event.
The Mill overlooks Autauga creek with a serene view of some of the most historic sites in downtown Prattville. Daniel Pratt’s buildings that made up his factory are now city apartments commemorating the history. Without industrialist Daniel Pratt, and his vision, there would not be a Prattville as we know it today.
“This is a great day in Prattville. My barber used to be right here downtown and getting my haircut as a kid, I used to wonder what this building would be when I grew up. What will this be in 30 years? Here we are today in this beautiful space,” Prattville Area Chamber of Commerce Chairman Elect Jimmy Morris Jr. said.
Morris opened the ribbon cutting event for the Prattville Chamber where Prattville Mayor Bill Gillespie and Tommy Newton, of Commercial Real Estate Developers, both spoke as well as Kea Calame, Senior Vice President of Asset Management for Envolve Communities. Envolve Communities is the developers behind The Mill apartments.
“There’s been a lot of changes going on here in Prattville. Daniel Pratt has really set his mark and put Prattville on the map in so many different ways. Whether that’s here in Autauga county, in the state, nation or around the world,” Gillespie said.
Many other thanks were given throughout the ribbon cutting ceremony including Whaley Construction for taking on the project, to the architect behind it all, John Chambless of Chambless King Architects. All noted what a colossal mark this means in the Prattville community.
I have worked in this community for eight years and have met some of the most wonderful people that I know. I have just made tremendous friends alongside this whole project. There are so many people to thank in this room, I deeply appreciate your commitment. No one ever wavered in their perseverance to get this done,” Calame said.
But above all, it’s Daniel Pratt’s legacy that lives on through the history of the buildings, regardless of what it is used for.
“We are standing on the shoulders of Daniel Pratt. Daniel Pratt was a great industrious man, but before that, he was a man of faith. Today is a day of celebration. We’re celebrating the people who are responsible for this,” Newton said.
“They named their company Envolve. They became involved and stayed involved. I’m celebrating with them today, I’m celebrating this great project today,” Newton said.
It is hard to imagine downtown Prattville without these buildings as the backdrop. Had very important officials and agencies not stepped in to save the buildings, there was the possibility of the complex being dismantled and sold. Fortunately, that is not the case, and hopefully these buildings will be around for centuries to come.
For more information on the apartments available, layouts, and pricing, visit www.themillofprattville.com.
