House Approves $800,000 for Talladega Mountains Natural Resource Center

Pete Conroy, director of JSU's Environmental Policy Information Center (EPIC), reported that the U.S. House of Representatives has approved $800,000 for construction of JSU's Talladega Mountains Natural Resource Center.

The House passed H.R. 3, the Conference Report to the Safe, Accountable, Flexible, Efficient Transportation Equity Act: A Legacy for Users (SAFETEA-LU), which includes the $800,000.

Conroy said, "Finally, the concept of linking Alabama’s 'deepest canyon to highest mountains' is becoming more realistic through the simultaneous construction of this center and the Little River Canyon center in DeKalb County. Now it is time to be thinking about our developing partnerships, further planning, and details that will follow."

The project's mission is advance the cause of natural resource protection, tourism, and public education through the construction of a JSU-owned center that coordinates with multiple partners.

Project Synopsis

• The TMNRC is proposed as a facility for a variety of partners all focused on natural resource protection, management, promotion, and education.
  
  
• Located near I-20, on U.S. Forest Service land, it will serve as a gateway to this region’s forests, parks, and trails.
  
  
• Phase I, a USDA Forest Service administrative facility, was funded through the agency ($810k), and construction is nearly complete.
  
  
• Phase II will include space for the local, state, and federal partners.
  
  
• The facility will also serve as an evening extension campus of JSU for Heflin-area remedial students.
  
  

"Thanks go to Congressman Mike Rogers and his staff, for their lead efforts in making this happen. Additional thanks go to U.S. Senators Jeff Sessions and Richard Shelby for their efforts and dedication to this project," Conroy said. 

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