Residents of a Bay Minette neighborhood say that a planned new commercial park in their area—adjacent to the forthcoming Novelis aluminum recycling plant—will disrupt rural life in the area and potentially endanger people and wildlife.

“We’re not against growth, we’re not against our town growing, or jobs increasing,” said Shipp Road resident Michelle Long, who spoke on behalf of her neighborhood at the meeting. “What we are against is our peace and quiet being sacrificed for that.”

Earlier this month, the Baldwin County Planning and Zoning Commission approved Shipp Road Commercial Park, a subdivision comprised of 22 3-4 acre lots that are slated for commercial or industrial use. The park will be in Planning District 5, which is unzoned, however, the county will restrict the use of the lots to those permitted as “major commercial” or “light industrial” under county regulations through the commercial turnout permit issued to the project.

The park is less than a mile from the South Alabama Mega Site—the 3,000-acre future home of the Novelis aluminum recycling and rolling plant. The $2.5 billion plant is currently under construction and is slated to open in 2025. The developer, Bill Patterson Construction in Summerdale, noted that the primary use of the commercial park will likely be “subsidiary affiliates” of the Novelis plant.

But all of this new industry strains Shipp Road, a dead-end, largely residential road. Residents of the area argued that the road is not equipped to handle trucks and other traffic from industrial or commercial uses.