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ABOUT BRIDGEPORT TODAY.........

Statistics and Demographics for New Industry and New Businesses

                              EXECUTIVE SUMMARY

  Bridgeport’s New

Retail Industrial Park

  I:  LOCATION:

Bridgeport is located on US Hwy 72, and State Road 277, in Jackson County, in the northeast corner of Alabama. Our City limits joins Stevenson, Alabama at County road 69, and the City of South Pittsburg, Tennessee at the Tennessee State Line.  We are 28 miles west of Chattanooga, Tennessee, 135 miles northeast of Birmingham, Alabama, 135 Miles southeast of Nashville, Tennessee, and 145 miles northwest of Atlanta, Georgia.

II   DEMOGRAPHICS:

A: POPULATION GROWTH, Bridgeport, AL 35740     (Per US Census Bureau)

  1990                       2000                                       2001  (Est.)

   2,974                       2,936                                       2,801

  PLEASE NOTE: Since 1994 Bridgeport has annexed approximately 500 people into the City limits. The City of Bridgeport estimates our population within the City limits, as being over 4,100 people.

The Bridgeport Utility Department reports they have approximately 1,350 water customers within the Corporate limits, and many of these water customers serve multiple families in apartment buildings and complexes from one meter. Like many other Municipalities across America, the Census Bureau did not do a very good job with their last two censuses for Bridgeport.

B: POPULATION OF NEIGHBORING CITIES                  POPULATION               MILES AWAY

Stevenson, Alabama 35772                                     2, 256                      Joins Bridgeport

South Pittsburg, Tennessee 37380                           7,048                       Joins Bridgeport

Jasper, Tennessee             37347                            7,249                        8 Miles

Whitwell, Tennessee 373                                         8,549                       13 Miles

North Sand Mountain, Alabama                               10,000 +                      6 miles

Dade County Georgia                                              26,000                     15 miles

Jackson County, Alabama                                        54,348

  C: AREA

Approximately 45 square miles

Jackson County, Alabama 1,124 square miles

B: CLIMATE

Average temperature                January: 41 degrees                             July: 78 degrees

Average Rainfall                          45 inches                                   

Prevailing Winds                          7 mph southwest

Altitude:                                      644 feet

C: NEAREST METRO AREAS

Atlanta, Ga            140 Miles                Birmingham, AL   120 Miles                

Chattanooga, TN    28 Miles               Nashville, TN         115 Miles                 

Huntsville, AL         68 Miles

D: YEAR ESTABLISHED:

Bridgeport                1891

Jackson County                1819

III : MUNICIPAL INFORMATION

  A: FORM OF GOVERNMENT:

  Mayor and five (5) City Council Members        City Hall   (256) 495-3892    Fax (256) 495-3611

John W. Lewis, Mayor                    Home and Business 256-495-2800                         City Hall (256) 495-3892

Inda Galovich, City Clerk

  Council Members:   Dave Robinson, Mayor Pro-tem,  Courtney Coffman, David Hughes, Dywayne Moore, Bobby Seabolt

  B: POLICE PROTECTION

  Joe Stoveall., Chief       Officers                  Volunteers                Dispatchers           Cars

  Paid Police Department       8                             6                            5                         7

  C: FIRE PROTECTION     

  Volunteer Fire Department        Paid Members                Volunteers             Trucks

  Jim Mashburn,  Fire Chief             2                                   26                          4

D: PLANNING AND ZONNING BOARDS

Planning Board                                     Members                Meetings

  Rubye Hahn, Chairman                                     9                        Once a Month

  Zonning Board                                    

  Tim Allen, Chairman                                    5                         Once a Month

  E: BUILDING PERMITS:

Building Permits are issued by the City Clerk and approved by the Zonning Board. They may be

Picked up at the City Hall.

  F: UTILITY SERVICES *

  WATER:

Bridgeport Utilities                  Jim Hughes, Manager                                (256) 495-2571

P.O. Box 36

Bridgeport, AL 25740                      (City Owned and Operated)

  Water:

Supply                   Mountain Springs and the Tennessee River

Capacity                                3,000,000 GPD

Demand                 2,000,000 GPD       

Storage                  2,590,000 gallons

  SEWER:

  Treatment                Secondary

Capacity                 2,000,000 GPD

Demand                 1,500,000 GPD

  NATURAL GAS

  Natural Gas is distributed by the Bridgeport Utilities, and is supplied by the East Tennessee Gas System.

  ELECTRICITY

 Supplied by T.V.A. (Tennessee Valley Authority)

  Distributed by:

North Alabama Electric Co-operative,                              (256) 437-2281:

P.O. Box 628                                                          TOLL FREE 1-800-572-2900

Stevenson, AL 35772

  Direct Purchase from TVA

For larger power users                                                      (615) 755-6786

*Rate Quotes Available by calling the Mayor or the City Clerk.

GARBAGE

Bridgeport’s official garbage service is Hicks Garbage Disposal of Stevenson, Alabama for both household and business garbage.  Household garbage runs $10.75 per moth, and business garbage fee’s can be obtained by calling Bobby Hicks, (256) 437-2289.

IV : COMMUNITY SERVICES

A: Education

Bridgeport Elementary School                    Grades 1-4

Bridgeport Middle School                                      Grades 5-8

North Jackson High School                          Grades 9-12

All schools in the area are accredited by the Alabama State Department of Education and the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools. The local schools are operated by the Jackson County Board of Education.

Jackson County Schools

The Jackson County Board of Education employs over 400 teachers and over 300 support personnel with 6,600 students enrolled in 17 “primary schools.”  The test scores of the students are also at or above the national averages. The Jackson County Board of Education is implementing a TechPrep program geared for students who want to enter the technical workforce. This program prepares students for a job after high school or for seeking a more advanced degree at a technical institution. Over two thirds of the classroom teachers in the Jackson County school system have attained a Masters level degree or better.

  Vocational Technical                Ernest Pruett Center of Technology                          20 miles

                                        Hollywood, AL      (256) 574-6079

                                                Enrollment 330

Northeast State Junior College has a Technical Division offering postsecondary training in the following fields: Business and Management Technology, Computer Science, Drafting Design Technology, Emergency Medical Services, Industrial Electronics Technology and Office Administration.

Chattanooga State Vocational School at Kimball, Tennessee                 5 miles

Chattanooga State Kimball, a full service site of Chattanooga State Technical Community College, is leading the charge to provide residents of Marion County Tennessee and North Jackson County, Alabama with job skills and education they need to compete in on increasingly technical workplace.

Nearest Post Secondary Education

  Two-Year College:                  Northeast State Junior College   (38 miles)

                                                                Powell, AL

                                                                (256) 228-6001

                                                                Enrollment: 1, 636

Universities:                                          University of the South                      (22 Miles)

                                                                Sewanee, TN

                                                                (931) 598-1238     1-800-522-2234

                                                                Enrollment: 1,318

                                                               University of Tennessee at Chattanooga        (28 miles)

                                                                Chattanooga, Tennessee

                                                                (423) 755-4111

                                                                Enrollment: 8,464

                                                                University of Alabama in Huntsville              (75 miles)

                                                                Huntsville, AL    

                                                                (256) 842-6335

                                                                Enrollment 6,754

  B: Hospitals

  Bridgeport has a new Multi million dollar Hospital and Emergency Room facility in the works, which will be built on the new U.S. Highway 72 by-pass, hopefully by the end of the summer of 2002. The new facility will have a 24 hour 7 days per week Emergency Room, as well as a medical complex staffed with Specialists and General Practioners.

  Grandview Medical Center                     12 miles

Highway 28 & I-24

Jasper, TN 37347

(423) 837-9500

70 Beds                                                  30 PHYSICIANS                       

  Grandview Medical Center is a new facility with a 70 bed facility located in Jasper, Tennessee at the beginning of the beautiful Sequatchie Valley. They recently celebrated their third anniversary, (built in 1999)  and are averaging over 50,000 patients a year. They recently opened Mountainview Treatment Center, a Psychiatric facility, and are nearing the end of construction on a new fixed MRIsuite and expanded Medical Office Building, which are all conveniently located on their campus.

  Clinics                                    Dentists

4                                                                                                                  3

Nursing Homes

There is the North Jackson Nursing Home located in the Bridgeport City limits with approximately 90 beds.

  C: Recreation and Tourism

V. TRANSPORTATION

A: Public Transit System

Buses are available through the Council on Aging and Jackson County Rural Health-These are geared toward serving the elderly and handicapped, providing them with transportation to and from the Doctor, Hospital and Shopping.

B: Rail Service

Company                                             Route

CSX Railway                                       Chattanooga-Nashville

Norfolk Southern                                   Chattanooga-Nashville-Memphis

C: Motor Freight 

There are over thirty motor freight carrier companies licensed to serve the needs of Bridgeport businesses. Those with terminals are;

Coastal Transport                     M&L Transport                     Noble & Pitts Trucking

Old South Freight              Parrett Trucking                       Custom Transport

Meteor Express                        Yellow Freight Lines                 South Eastern Freight

Cooper Freight Lines               

D: Air

Private

Stevenson Municipal Airport             3 miles                          4,100 ft lighted Runway VFR

Marion County Airport             5 miles                          3,500 ft. lighted Runway IFR

Scottsboro Airport                         28 miles                 5,050 ft. lighted Runway VFR

Commercial

Chattanooga                             28 miles       7,400 ft Runway, 27 flights daily

Birmingham                              110 miles     10,000 ft Runway 74 flights daily

(AIRPORTS CONTINUED)

Commercial

Nashville, TN.             110 miles

E. Water: The navigable Tennessee River traverses Bridgeport in a southwesterly direction offering a nine foot channel depth for economical shipments. Both public and private use barge terminals are available for loading and off loading timber, steel, coal, iton, ore and other bulk products.The state of Alabama has licensed inland ports in Bridgeport. The Tennessee River is a part of the Interconnected Waterways system which serves 21 states. Utilizing the Tennessee-Tombigbee Waterway barge shipments can reach the deepwater port of Mobile in approximately four and a half days.

VI. LABOR AND INDUSTRY INFORMATION     

1. Labor Analysis (Jackson County) 2001

Civilian Labor Force                                                               26,350

            In Manufacturing                                                     7,250

            In Transportation, Communication, Utilities                1,033

            In Wholesale/Retail                                                            3,382

            In Services                                                                          9,540

Male                66.6%

Female             44.4% 

Minority            6.4%

B: Local Taxes

                                    Rate/                Assess.                         Effective Rate

                                    $1,000             Ratio                In City               Out City

City                              $10.00             20%                 $2.00              

County                         $20.50             20%                 $4.10               $4.10

State                            $  6.50             20%                 $1.30               $1.30

Total                            $37.00                                     $7.40               $5.40

Above tax figures include 7.00 mills for countywide schools.

(Thee mills of the state tax is also a school tax)

Retail Sales

City                  3.0%

County             2.0%

State                4.0%

Total                9.0%

SUMMARY OF AVAILABLE INCENTIVES

(a)        Alabama is one of the only six states that allow federal income tax to be   deducted before computing state income tax resulting in the effective tax rate of approximately 3.5%

(b)        All raw materials, goods in process and finished goods are exempt from inventory (ad valorem ) tax.

(c)        Alabama law provides for deductions of exemptions on corporate income tax, ad valorem tax, franchise tax and sales tax for the amount invested in pollution control equipment.

(d)   In Alabama, state and local taxes per capita are only 67% of the average paid in the nation.

4.      Enterprise Zone – Bridgeport and Jackson County have been designated as a   State Enterprise Zone. This program offers state franchise and income tax credits of up to $2,500 per employee annually to approved companies within the zone boundaries. As administrator of the zone, the Jackson County E.D.A. will make the application to the State and County  to include your company thereby offering these benefits.

5.      Capitol Investment Tax Credit- The State of Alabama allows a corporate income tax credit of 5% of capital invested in a sibgle project for twenty years for new and expanding industries. Certain job, investment, and wage minimums do apply - $1 million investment, 15 additional jobs, $8.00 per hour.

6.      Industrial Grants – Grants are available up to $150,000 to reimburse your company    for costs associated with the preparation of a means to access a site as well as clearing, excavating, grading, drainage, and reasonable rehabilitation costs of buildings and other structures. The actual amount of the grant is based on the capital investment for the project.

7.      Free Employee Training – No summary would be complete without offering the services of The Alabama Industrial Development Training Institute which is one of the premier recruitment and retention tools in the nation. Their mission is to screen, train and offer a workforce that will surpass the productivity of your company’s (an company’s) workers in other states. Their slogan “Our attitude is priceless, Our training is free” suggests that they will furnish potential employees (you choose from a group of trainees) that not only have the skills that you require, but also have the outlook you desire. This all- inclusive fully-customized training program is available at no cost. Absenteeism and turnover rates of less than 2%,  have been experienced throughout the first year, by the 500+ companies that have utilized the AIDT system. Management seminars and expansion support are also available in future years.

8.      HUBZone Designation – The HUBZone empowerment Contracting Program allows small businesses, located in so-called historically underutilized business zones, to negotiate sole source contracts and participate in retricted competition limited to HUBZone firms. Qualified companies also qualify for a ten percent price evaluation preference in full and open competition. The firm must be a small business that is owned and controlled by U.S. Citizens and at least 35% of its employees must be HUBZone residents.