BAY MINETTE AND FOLEY — As Baldwin County continues to grow, municipalities are increasing opportunities to attract visitors for sports tourism and ecotourism events by building hotels in south and north Baldwin.

As previously reported by GCM in an article on the 2024 Alabama Tourism Economic Report, 2.1 million travelers stayed in Baldwin County hotels and motels last year with an average occupancy rate of 62.5% at an average of $164 a night, the highest occupancy rate and price per night in the state.

Both Bay Minette and Foley marked this tourism growth with recent celebrations, including groundbreakings and grand openings for Cobblestone Hotels and Suites. City officials hope the hotels will positively impact their sports tourism industries.

In Bay Minette, Myles "Bubba" Reed owns the property where the new hotel is being built as well as the property of the Big Mike's Steakhouse coming soon to Bay Minette. He said he did not expect a hotel to be built on the site when he first bought the property, but he feels it is a step in the right direction for the revitalization of the city's downtown area.

"From the very beginning we heard that we needed a good sit-down restaurant in downtown and a hotel," Reed said at a groundbreaking event for the hotel. "We set out to try and find that."

As the "first big hotel" for Bay Minette, City Administrator and Finance Director Tammy Smith said, "this is a big deal for us." The hotel is set to open in the summer of 2026.

Bay Minette Mayor Bob Wills spoke on how the hotel would benefit the city's sports tourism and potentially "get the snowball rolling" on ecotourism in the area.

"There's a lot of ecotourism – that's part of the county," Wills said, "with the rivers and the landings, which we get some (visitors for) that now, but this should make that more attractive. Because one of the problems is, with a lot of these fishing tournaments and all, we don't have good places to stay."

Wills also touched on the softball complex built a few years ago and how people "stay over in Saraland" during softball tournaments in Bay Minette. He also mentioned how there's "lots of activity at the courthouse," located just a few blocks from the upcoming hotel.

"You all know that the council really believes that the revitalizing of downtown is important not just for these specific projects but for the overall development of our whole community," he said in a speech at the groundbreaking event. "This project and the Big Mike's project, we think, are going to be great catalysts to help us bring in other retail, restaurant and, really, continue us on our way in the development of our great city."

Novelis, a sustainable aluminum solutions provider, is under construction in Bay Minette and "on track" to open in 2026, according to the company's website. Baldwin County Economic Development Alliance's "Baldwin by the Numbers" projects Novelis' economic impact at more than $4.1 billion in capital investment for Baldwin County.

Foley celebrated a grand opening for the Cobblestone Hotel and Suites located at 2970 Koniar Way. Mike Thompson, Foley city administrator, said the new hotel should benefit from the proximity of the city's sports facility.

As previously reported by GCM, the Sports Alabama Annual Report showed Foley ranking fifth in largest economic impact in the state bringing in $47 million with 91 events and 31,615 booked hotel nights.

"This particular project is very important to the city because, as you guys know, we have a large sports tourism facility just to the north of here," Thompson said. "Having another hotel that is literally in walking distance to our event center, it really makes a difference with us retaining some of the lodging that we want to get from our sports tourism facilities."

In a previously written GCM article on the "Baldwin by the Numbers" report, Foley is the second largest municipality in Baldwin County with an estimated population of 26,248. Foley's population has grown 70.1% since 2010 with the addition of 10,821 residents.

"This is a great project that we're seeing come to fruition here in Foley," Thompson said.

Dozens were in attendance at both events, and all seemed enthusiastic for each project and the potential impacts the hotels will have on Bay Minette and Foley.