By: Ali Elizabeth Turner
This is the first in a series of articles from and about our Limestone County Commission that are designed to inform, educate and empower our citizens so that we can work together to “grow well.” This is a phrase we hear often these days, and Chairman Collin Daly, along with the rest of the commissioners, want to make sure that people understand what they mean when they use it. Some of the articles will spotlight individual commissioners and their concerns which are specific to the districts they represent, some articles will reflect ongoing Town Hall events, and some will talk about the functions of various departments and services that are the purview of the county and the commission.
Because we are indeed the fastest growing county in Alabama, and one of the fastest growing counties in the United States, this article is going to include the function and focus of the Commission, and highlight the Leading Limestone Town Hall meetings and surveys.
Collin Daly set the tone of our meeting by asking, “How do we do what we do?” There are a lot of moving parts to making the county run well, and nothing is more important than public safety. “You have to have a safe community to have a community at all,” he said, and the Sheriff’s Department is committed to doing that task well, 100%.
We have eight municipalities, and the City of Athens is in the middle of it all. It takes a network and excellent communication to have a city and county work side by side, and we have that.
Education is crucial. We have county schools outside of Athens Public Schools; we have the Career Tech center, Calhoun College, and other facilities that are preparing the next generation to be a part of the work force. We also have Senior Centers and much deserved support for one of the largest concentrations of veterans in the United States. Athens Main Street, the Chamber of Commerce, the list is by no means complete, and the endgame according to Daly is to “keep Limestone County’s small town feel while we grow.”
Besides the chairman and the district commissioners, we have the revenue and license commissioners, and utilities. There’s more, for sure, but Chairman Daly wanted to emphasize the need for our residents to get involved in the Leading Limestone meetings and surveys. Here is some of what Leading Limestone is saying about the next 12 months, and how you can get involved in the process to ensure that we really do grow well:
Limestone County is developing a Strategic Plan, and we need your input to create a vision for the future! This plan will guide decisions on economic growth, infrastructure, housing, transportation, and community services—but it starts with YOU. During the public engagement process we will be defining a future vision for Limestone County. What do the next few decades of development look like for the county?
Over the next 12 months, the county will hold public meetings, and begin working on planning for the future. The final product will be a strategic plan that will guide county leadership through implementation of the strategies and goals developed throughout the process.
During the end of April and beginning of May, the county held the first of the planning meetings, and they were located at public facilities in the four quadrants of the county. I attended the one held in West Limestone at the volunteer fire station. There were large pieces of paper on several tables which
addressed concerns such as infrastructure, housing, economic development, education, quality of life, environment, and more, and we gathered around and brainstormed. All ideas were recorded, even ones with which other tablemates disagreed, and there was lively discussion, laughter, networking, and the quality of communication was solid. I appreciated the fact that Chairman Daly mentioned to me that as a result of the West Limestone meeting, a shift in concept and direction was experienced by one of his staffers in the Engineering Department. It was a whole new perspective that had never been considered, and this kind of result is the exact purpose of the Leading Limestone meetings as well as the survey.
There will be more meetings, but for now, the whole commission is hoping you will take the time to complete the online survey and let your voice be heard. This is your chance to shape the place you and your family will call home for decades. Then, please attend every meeting you can. You can also feel free to attend meetings outside of your district, which is what I did, and I am so glad that I did. Whatever you do, get involved. To take the survey, go to www.leadinglimestone.com. We will be sure to let you know about upcoming meetings and developments, and hope you will catch the vision of making our home, as Chairman Daly calls it, “a place to be proud of.”
By: Ali Elizabeth Turner
May 16, 2025
