Chase Cobb, the new president of Pike County Economic Development Corp., says he doesn’t have to reinvent the wheel after taking over for longtime president and recently retired Marsha Gaylard.
“The successes that we’ve had in Pike County recently have been unprecedented for counties our size,” Cobb says. “Probably the biggest part of that is the leadership. There are our industrial leaders who have actively recruited other industries, and then our local elected officials, like the county commission and the mayors of Troy and Brundidge.”
For Cobb, getting each of those players on the same page isn’t just a bonus. It’s essential to achieving the county’s economic development goals.
“It’s detrimental if you don’t,” he says. “Everybody’s pulling in the same direction. That’s just been key. The members on my board, including SAEC General Manager David Bailey, have been extremely active and helpful, whether it’s working with Lockheed Martin, Rex Lumber or Universal Precast.”
New Business & Old Friends
There has been much to celebrate in recent years. Since 2018, firearms manufacturer Kimber, Rex Lumber, Clyde May’s Conecuh Ridge Distillery, Universal Precast and Magnolia Vegetable Processors LLC all opened or announced plans to open in Pike County. Creation of more than 750 jobs was the result.
“Southeast Alabama is a fantastic place to do business, and hopefully we can continue to grow,” Cobb says. But his vision is not solely focused on recruiting new business to the area.
“I think probably one of the most important things I can do in my role is help assist the industries that we have — the long-term community partners that we’ve had,” he says.
Many companies already in the area — including Lockheed Martin, Sanders Lead, Cox Container, Golden Boy Foods and Southern Classic Food Group — added the potential for more jobs with expansions announced in the last couple of years. For those businesses, Cobb sees his role as being a conduit that can connect business leaders and local government.
“Whether it’s workforce development or infrastructure, we have to make sure we’re good partners with them and we help facilitate that communication,” Cobb says. “Recruiting new industries is great, and we’re going to do that. But helping our existing long-term partners that have been here for years is crucial.”
Staying Home
As Pike County continues to create new opportunities for businesses and the local workforce, Cobb faces a new challenge: finding people to step into those roles. Like many rural counties across the state, population shifts to urban areas have made holding on to talent a top priority.
“We’re trying to be creative — whether it is training opportunities at the local high school or getting people to move here or to stay here. That’s important, too,” Cobb says. “One of the things we’re trying to focus on is quality of life. I don’t think people in my role really thought about that 10 years ago.”
When it comes to highlighting what makes Pike County a great place to live, Cobb is able to draw on his own experience. A graduate of Pike Liberal Arts School in Troy, he graduated from the University of Alabama at Birmingham and earned a juris doctorate from Faulkner University’s Thomas Goode Jones School of Law.
Cobb worked for six years as director of government affairs at the Association of County Commissions of Alabama before getting the chance to return home. He and his wife, Rachel, couldn’t say no to raising their 2-year-old son, John, in Pike County.
“It’s not often you have an opportunity to move back to your hometown, especially in rural Alabama,” Cobb says. “We jumped at the opportunity.”
Some counties in the state have seen a talent drain due to a lack of opportunities. But it’s stories like his own that assure Cobb this is not the case in Pike. There are jobs for those who want them, as long as they have the training they need.
“Every industry here is looking for employment. By far the biggest issue we deal with is training and finding people to fill these positions,” Cobb says. “We’ve had so much success that we really have to catch up on the workforce issue. It’s a good problem to have, but it’s still a problem.”
It’s a problem without a quick fix. But Cobb believes an investment of time and commitment from the entire community, including educators, will pay off well for Pike County down the road.
“Our county school system does a really good job of creating a number of programs like welding or other manufacturing and technical programs to build a pipeline,” he says. “We also want to partner with Troy University for those four-year graduates and getting them to stay here. It’s not as easy as passing a piece of legislation and making it happen. It’s a long-term thing you have to stay on top of.”