HANCEVILLE, Ala. – In a small unassuming office on Commercial Street in Hanceville, a stack of books “to be read” continues to grow as their owner Nolan Bradford works tirelessly to promote and better his hometown. A simple purchase of an office space in historic downtown Hanceville has led to Bradford and his partners investing their time, energy and money into saving the old buildings from crumbling.
If you go to an event, festival, concert, council meeting or community meeting of any kind in Hanceville, Bradford is going to be there. He is dedicated to making sure Hanceville is a great place to live and visit. He owns Bradford Development, is partnered with Dan Willingham in Welcome Back Hanceville, LLC. and is partners with Tim Burney in Friends of the Festival.
Bradford is a Hanceville native and graduated from Hanceville High School in 1982.
“I moved to Birmingham in the early ‘90s and moved back in 2003 when my parents started getting elderly,” he said. “I came back and helped them take care of the farm.”
He worked at home doing computer work when he thought about finding an office.
He explained, “I was just driving through, and I saw this little office with a red door on it. The ceiling was falling down in the bathroom. It kept being for sale, so I bought it and remodeled it. Shortly thereafter, the City put the right side of Romine’s Dry Goods up for sale. I thought, ‘Cool, I’ll put a little shop in it or something.’ So I got it. These buildings just kept being available and by that time, I guess I had gotten the fever that it was starting to look better and I just kept getting as many as I could so I could fix them up. My main goal was to get these buildings revived before they fell to the ground. Honestly, some might have been better to fall but they had four walls and that’s a start. They’ve all been gutted and all up to code on electrical and plumbing. As long as you have a good base you are OK. Cullman rent is outlandish, and you get good rent per square foot here. I think it will work. I hope it works.”
Now, Bradford is working to renovate the upstairs of the downtown businesses into apartment spaces.
The apartment spaces above Outbreak Games are complete, but Bradford added, “I am currently working on five in Romine’s, including my little cubby hole where I don’t have to go home all the time.” He will be adding at least a dozen more in the loft areas down Commercial Street and said he thinks they will make perfect places for students from Wallace State to rent.
Bradford said the Commercial Street retail space filled up, but then new opportunity came to be.
“That was essentially my goal, to get it full, but then the Wall Center became available. Then the building next door and I HAD to get it,” he said.
Bradford feels that once he can get the buildings on Bangor Street remodeled and the apartments completed, downtown Hanceville will be finished.
He added, “All of this should feed off itself. We have a variance of things here. I think the coffee shop (Arise Coffee Co.) is really going to do well. It’s going to get Wallace engaged back again. The gym will get people in town. There’s antique stores and dress shops and everything else.”
What would Bradford like people to know about Hanceville?
He said, “That it’s here! It’s not Jack’s, McDonald’s, Subway and Warehouse Grocery and all that. There is something down here worth coming to see. It’s got good people, and everyone is nice and friendly and it’s a place worth visiting.”
Besides the renovation of the downtown buildings, Bradford and partner Burney also hope to rejuvenate the city’s social scene. They created the Friends of the Festival to provide fun activities and events for the Hanceville community. Friends of the Festival organizes the Irish Heritage Festival as well as the Mud Creek Festival.
Bradford stays involved with all things Hanceville by attending every city council meeting, and he also played a part in helping Hanceville achieve its Alabama Communities of Excellence (ACE) designation.
He said, “We set up things we wanted to do to the town to make it better. Rejuvenating downtown was one of them. There were other things on the list that (Mayor) Kenneth (Nail) is working hard to get going so that list of things and that drive to do that is one of the things that makes you eligible to be an ACE community.”
He continued, “I want to see everything thrive and I want to see the streets full again. I want to see something happen at the old Blue Bell plant. I want to get some sort of jobs in here that will employ more than just one person.”
A new electronics store is being planned for the old theater building and Bradford added, “We’ve got a nice little complement of different things. The game room was really different. I wasn’t expecting it, but it has brought a lot of people down here. I would like to get the bus tours back from the Shrine (of the Most Blessed Sacrament) and we probably need another antique store to make that happen.”
Bradford admits he spends most of his time brainstorming ways to promote Hanceville. His work ethic combined with his entrepreneurial spirit and love for his hometown have resulted in a resurrection to the heart of Cullman County’s oldest city.
In his spare time, Bradford enjoys reading, but based on the large stack of books, he doesn’t find much down time.
He enjoys fiction and smiled, “I love (John) Grisham and Stephen King, even though he’s a liberal.”
Bradford invites everyone to come check out the city of Hanceville.
“There is stuff here that is interesting to see and do. By bettering Hanceville, if I can get the infrastructure right, I think that the rest will follow. If I can give the people a nice place to come and do business, then people will come, and customers will come, and commerce will happen. I am rejuvenating downtown, and I am promoting everybody I know that’s here. We have the best eye doctor in town, I know that. This is the first time my prescription has been right in 40 years. She’s really good. Things like that people should know about that they probably don’t. We have the best steaks in the county (at Bulldogs Country Cook’N), so I’ve been told. People will drive right by and not know it’s there. I want to change that!”
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