Macon County - The New Diamond

Strategically positioned along the I-85 corridor, Macon County is a prime business location. With Montgomery, AL 45 miles to the west and Atlanta 125 miles to the east on I-85, Macon County offers five exit/access points to this East/West artery. Transportation and logistics are natural fits for the area.

Macon County is also in the heart of the Southeast US Automotive corridor, with six automotive OEMs within a 150 mile radius. Several tier 1 and tier 2 automotive suppliers and manufacturers have recognized the many benefits that a Macon County location provides and have expanded or located their base of operations in the area.

Tuskegee’s world-famous Moton Airfield, home to Republic Airlines’ newest training facility offers a prime location for aviation and aerospace industry.

Macon County also sits in the center of the Southeast US’s largest forestry baskets, with a BDO ‘A’ ranking for woody biomass.

With so many open avenues of opportunity, Macon County is truly defining itself as the New Diamond of the I-85 Corridor.

Macon County - Location, Location, Location

Macon County offers an affordable cost of living and it is well positioned geographically. Auburn, Montgomery and Columbus, GA are nearby, which allows easy access to ‘high quality of lifestyle’ metropolitan statistic areas and one million people within an hour’s drive.

Located along the fastest Economic Growth Corridor in the South, consider Macon County and all the benefits of our prime location:

The I-85 corridor
CSX Main Line Rail
Large, industry-ready greenfield sites from 20 to 2,500 acres ready for development
Strong existing utility and road infrastructure
Skilled and motivated workforce
Moton Field Airport (home of the Tuskegee Airmen) with a corporate 5,000 foot runway and fulltime fixed base operator, Golden Eagle Aviation
Atlanta Hartsfield Airport less than 2 hours and the Port of Mobile 3.5 hours
Educational centers with engineering programs including:

Diamonds are formed with time and under pressure. Our fascinating history and cultural diversity along with our location and resources are the essence of the diamond we’ve become. Macon County’s economy and way of life simply grow richer each year and will never chip or break. We’re the newest jewel of the South. Come and see for yourself how this diamond shines!

Qualified Opportunity Zones

Macon has three newly certified Qualified Opportunity Zones, which will help investors and promote economic growth. Qualified Opportunity Zones allow real estate investors to defer short-term and/or long-term gain upon the sale of property by reinvesting such gain in accordance with the program rules, and to potentially abate existing gains in long-term investments. Investors may also be eligible for tax-free treatment on all post-acquisition appreciation for investments with a 10-year investment horizon. For more information on Qualified Opportunity Zones, please visit the overview page.

Biofuel Development Opportunity Zone

Macon County’s Biofuel Development Opportunity zone holds an ‘A’ rating. This rating denotes high prospective viability of Feedstock Supply and Infrastructure, with assets such as a growing forest industry and well-established forest supply trains with a proven track record of scale-up.

New Markets Tax Credits

Financing is also available through New Markets Tax Credits, a federal tax program authorized by Congress in 2000 to incentivize growth and investment of capital in small businesses and commercial real estate in small communities. To find out more, see the Department of Treasury’s Page on NMTCs.

R.E.A.L. Park

R.E.A.L. Park is a ±7M square-foot, Class “A”, master-planned industrial park under development by Farpoint Development. Situated on approximately ±700 acres, this property is located just south of Exit 42 on I-85, about 1.5 miles north of Tuskegee in Macon County, Alabama.

CSX Platinum Site

Situated at the exit 38 interchange of I85 and just north of Moton Field, our CSX Platinum Site has Class 1 CSX rail service and unparalleled access to interstate, rail and air transport. Located in the center of the Southeast Automotive Corridor, with Atlanta to the east and Montgomery/I65 to the west, this location is ideal for transportation/logistics industry development.

Quality of Life

Nestled between the Coosa and the Tallapoosa, our lush natural areas are both beautiful, like the Tuskegee National Forest, and practical for agriculture.

Tuskegee, as the county seat for Macon County, is a huge part of the American story. From Native Americans to civil war to civil rights, the story of the nation’s journey can uniquely be found in Macon County. Known for famed Tuskegee University and designated as a historical site, there’s always something to do! Whether you’d rather explore the Tuskegee Airmen Historical Site at Moton Field or our museums and lovely monuments, or just go for a walk along the William Bartram Trail in the National Forest, you’ll never be bored.

The Tuskegee National Forest is the smallest National Forest in the US, but there’s plenty to do! It features not only nearly nine miles of hiking trails, but also the Uchee Shooting Range, a fire tower, several campsites, mountain biking trails, a wildlife viewing area, and the Taska Recreation Area.

We've Changed History for the Better

Our rich and storied history is an intrinsic part of our culture, and we celebrate it every day.

Created by the Alabama Legislature on December 18th, 1832, Macon County is named for distinguished soldier, politician, and North Carolina Congressman Nathaniel Macon, and was originally settled for cotton production. Some fifty years later, it would become the home of the prestigious Tuskegee University, founded by Booker T. Washington and in World War II, the Tuskegee Airmen trained on the Moton Airfield.

As a center for civil and human rights, it was also the birthplace of Rosa Parks and the Rosenwald schools, which brought educational opportunities to many communities across the South. The Tuskegee Veterans Administration Medical Center treated over 300,000 African-American soldiers who were denied or ignored at other veterans’ hospitals.

Tuskegee is also home to the History Center, which features a display on the infamous Tuskegee Syphilis Study as well as exhibits on the Creek Indians, the founding of the Tuskegee Institute and politics in the Antebellum era.