‘The Mill at Prattville’ welcomes first residents, new restaurant to open nearby

MONTGOMERY, Ala. (WSFA) - The former cotton gin factory in downtown Prattville is now apartments, and this month, the new complex welcomed its first residents.

“The Mill at Prattville” has five buildings and a total of 127 units. Construction on one of the buildings finished this month, and the remaining four buildings are set to be completed in July.

The complex offers one, two, and three-bedroom units that range in price from $1,300 to $2,100.

“I remember growing up and just seeing the building here and just nothing going on, trees growing out of it, so it’s really great to see it brought to life,” said The Mill at Prattville Community Manager Ashley Stoddart. “Now we get to be a part of downtown Prattville and have housing for people, and I really just think it’s going to bring a lot more attention to downtown businesses and just the overall growth for Prattville.”

The oldest building dates back to 1848. Daniel Pratt, who founded Prattville in 1839, initially used the structures and creek to power his industrial empire.

The buildings have been abandoned since 2014 when Cotton Gin Manufacturing Company Continental Eagle closed. The factory was used to manufacture Cotton Gins and Cotton Processing machinery.

Due to the historic nature of the buildings, each apartment is unique and has its own layout.

“We really don’t have any floor plans that are the same, so they all are different in their own characteristics,” Stoddart said.

The financing closed on the $37 million project in November 2021. The Historic Prattville Redevelopment Authority, or HPRA, originally bought the site at auction for $1.7 million in December 2014.

However, the Mill at Prattville is not the only exciting project coming to downtown Prattville. Another one of the city’s oldest buildings is getting a facelift.

The Historic Prattville Redevelopment Authority has also purchased “The Picker House” building across the street from the new apartments and is working with developers to bring a fine-dining restaurant and bar to downtown Prattville.

About 20 years ago, a fire burned down the “Gurney Building” next the to the Picker House, which almost destroyed it.

There is no time frame for when the project will be completed.

“I think it’s going to be great for the city of Prattville altogether, but that’s just great for our residents too just to have somewhere else to walk. I really think that that’s gonna grow the community, and it’ll just be a nice cool space for people to go to that’s different,” Stoddart said.

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