Brewton is a great place to call home!

In the News

Lovelace runs for mayoral re-election

Qualifying for the August municipal elections officially began last week and candidates hoping for a position at the governing table have made their intentions known. Brewton Mayor Yank Lovelace has announced that he is seeking re-election to the seat and hopes to retain his position when the polls close on Aug. 26. In a prepared statement, Lovelace indicated he is ready to continue to lead the city. “I am announcing this week that I will be seeking reelection as Mayor of the City of Brewton,” Lovelace said in his statement.

“Serving three terms has been the honor of my life, and with your support, I will continue the work that keeps us economically competitive and moving forward. I have been deliberate in investing time and resources into our infrastructure—water, sewer systems, paving, sidewalks and parks. We added two splash pads and a pool, pickleball courts and other amenities to improve the quality of life for people who call Brewton home.”

Lovelace, who will be running for a third term, said the city has seen growth in many ways during his time in office.

“In 11 years we secured more than $30 million in grant funding invested in those projects, and in life-saving equipment for our fire department. I am grateful that you trusted me to help lead this city forward, and I humbly ask for your continued support.”

Qualifying for the upcoming municipal election will close on June 24 for those running for seats in city government. For those planning to vote in the upcoming election, residency must be established no later than July 27 in order to vote in the election for city government positions. Registration for voting is open until Aug. 11 for the purposes of voting in the Aug. 26 municipal elections.

Original article posted: Lovelace runs for mayoral re-election – The Brewton Standard

Brewton Redevelops its Downtown

UB Community Development LLC has provided $8 million in New Market Tax Credits to the city of Brewton and the Brewton Development Authority.

A community development partner of United Bank, UBCD says the funds will be used to support downtown redevelopment efforts to attract and encourage new projects. The plan includes the demolition and renovation of properties within the downtown area.

Provalus is one of the main companies to benefit from this project. The IT solutions and software development company expanded to Brewton in 2017, occupying a vacant space downtown. The company has invested $6.5 million in its Brewton center and had 200 employees earlier this year. Since then, it has continued to grow to the point that its current facility is at capacity. The redevelopment project will give the company the space it needs to expand in the existing facility.

“Watching Provalus grow and build in our downtown is nothing short of thrilling,” said Brewton Mayor Yank Lovelace. “There is nothing more exciting than seeing our strategy for economic development work, with jobs and future developments being the return on our investment. We have partnered with state and federal agencies, and local financial institutions to set the stage for a thriving downtown, and Provalus will be one of our biggest stars.”

The New Market Tax Credits program, administered by the U.S. Department of the Treasury Community Development Financial Institutions Fund, attracts private capital into low-income communities by permitting individual and corporate investors to receive a tax credit against their federal income tax in exchange for making equity investments in Community Development Entities. These credits total 39 percent of the original investment amount and are claimed over a seven-year period.

UBCD President Alex Jones said, “It takes more than a single project to restore a downtown; it takes continued partnership and commitment. Together, in partnership with the city of Brewton and Brewton Development Authority, our mission of providing innovative funding solutions like New Market Tax Credits is stimulating downtown redevelopment, recruiting new business, converting unused space and improving the physical image of downtown.”

United Bank has been serving Atmore and the surrounding communities for 116 years. UB Community Development is working with community development partners in the fields of healthcare, education, manufacturing, public works, affordable housing and more.
Orginal article posted: The Brewton Standard Brewton Redevelops its Downtown

This is Brewton, Alabama: Past and present

BREWTON, Ala. (WKRG) — 60 miles north of the coast, a town of 5,200 people surrounded by woods and waterways, has a legacy across the globe. The town is Brewton, Ala.

Mayor Yank Lovelace took office in 2012. His family is a founding family with roots that go back to the early 1800s.

“Brewton was developed as Indians moved out. Settlers moved in as land burned out in other places, but the real development of Brewton came after the Civil War because of the timber. And there was such a need forward that that’s where Brewton really started to grow,” said Lovelace. “My family got here in 1813. That’s first recorded on a map of Andrew Jackson. We permanently moved here in the late 1840s. So there were people in this area from the early 1800s on.”

The Timber Industry

The Logging industry is credited with putting Brewton on the map. Lovelace said the industry was successful due to its proximity to the water and river system, nearby Burnt Corn Creek and Murder Creek.

“Each little logging company had their own town, so there are really several towns that are connected here,” said Lovelace. “Brewton has got two large creeks on either side and if you go back into the 1800s post-civil war, we were in that timber belt that went across the South. Those creeks then went into the river and the river went to Pensacola, FL so it was very easy to float logs down those creeks, raft them together on the river, float into Pensacola, and a lot of that timber ended up on ships going to Spain.”

The railroad and other industries then came in for the timber, including Ford Motors, setting up the town to build a society and middle class.

“You have to think of the logging industry that needed a lot of other industries to support it. For example, you would need machine shops to work on. Logging locomotives. You would need foundries to make the parts,” said Lovelace. “So we had a large machine shop presence. Large foundries here. We had trained workers that could then make other parts for new automobiles. Then with trained workers, they were then able to start to bring in Nonnatural resource-type companies.”

The Brewton Lifestyle

Brewton was well-off in the beginning, ranking the second wealthiest town per capita in 1910-1911. Lovelace said the people and generations that stayed around made Brewton what it is today.

“A lot of the founding families are still here. They didn’t move. They invested their money here. If you read the papers back in the early part of the 1900s, they were very proud of the fact that they were investing their money in this town and not in other places,” said Lovelace.

The town was officially founded in 1885. Brewton serves as the Escambia County seat in the Alabama legislature.

With small-town charm, Lovelace said Brewton is the central hub for shopping and events.

“A lot of people may live outside the city limits, but they all work here. We’re a regional town, so you’ll find most of the larger stores here,” said Lovelace. “Even though you may personally live 5 miles outside of Brewton, you’re coming to Britain to work, and you’re coming to Brewton to shop, and you’re coming to Brewton because our schools are all A-rated schools, so you’re bringing your children here.”

Future of Brewton

Lovelace hopes this town will be one people stop and look around on the way to the beach.

“We have a number of things en route that people would want to stop and see. We have a museum, it’s very interesting here. We are in the process right now of working on an RV park, so if somebody was going to the beach they might want to stay here and that RV part would be inside one of our main parks that has a lake and walking trails and has things like that. So we are trying to capture the people as they do travel North and South or East and West,” said Lovelace.

Orginal article posted: This is Brewton, Alabama: Past and present | WKRG