HUNTSVILLE, Ala. (AP) — A U.S. Army installation in Alabama will grow from 44,000 employees to more than 50,000 by 2025, its commander said.
About $2 billion in infrastructure projects in the next five years will keep Redstone growing, said Lt. Gen. Edward Daly, the senior commander of Redstone Arsenal.
Daly made the comments at a recent meeting of the Huntsville Madison County Chamber of Commerce.
“As Redstone Arsenal grows, so does the Tennessee Valley,” Daly said at the meeting. The Tennessee Valley covers much of the northern half of Alabama, from the Mississippi state line to the Georgia state line and north to parts of Tennessee.
The arsenal is hiring at record levels, Daly said.
The arsenal has dozens of tenants, including NASA’s Marshall Space Flight Center and a growing FBI campus.
Al.com reports that Redstone already employs more workers than Regions Bank, which has about 20,000 employees. It also has more employees than Encompass Health, which employs about 29,000 people.
The Chamber of Commerce also unveiled its new recruiting target: veterans. The chamber has produced a video urging veterans across the United States to move to Huntsville for job opportunities, quality of life, and a community that’s home to thousands of other veterans.
“What we need from our community is the continued focus on education,” Daly said.
He added, “We have to be prepared to support the workforce for tomorrow, and we know that. We can’t grow without this educational cornerstone.”
The arsenal needs contracting and acquisition experts, engineers and administrators, Daly said. It also will need welders, plumbers and electricians.