Chilton County commissioners pull development motion, set June 16 work session to plan Ellison property

Commissioners discussed possible futures for the Ellison property on Highway 145 — including an arena or exhibition hall for rodeos, horse shows, motocross and concerts, or commercial development such as hotels — but pulled the motion to proceed and agreed to assemble a master plan at a special work session.

The exchange centered on competing priorities and site constraints. Commissioner Bone said the shared preference has been ‘‘wanting to put an arena there for events’’ and described typical facility sizes, suggesting a building roughly 300 by 150 feet could host rodeos, horse shows and concerts. Other commissioners warned that a large exhibition hall could consume much of the roughly nine‑acre site and that major projects may cost ‘‘15, 20, 25 million dollars.’’

Several board members pressed for a clear funding plan before committing to development. One commissioner said a jail roof and potential jail expansion remain higher priorities, arguing the commission must balance new projects with essential infrastructure work. After discussion, the board withdrew the motion to develop the property from the agenda and agreed to hold a work session focused only on the Ellison property and a master plan.

The board settled on a special work session for June 16 at 4:00 p.m., to meet in the new courthouse conference room, with commissioners saying that meeting will occur prior to the onset of budget work so that any funding requests can be considered in drafting next year’s budget.

Next steps: commissioners asked staff to prepare site information and to explore building types and cost estimates ahead of the work session so the board can evaluate options and possible revenue models.