A Community Developed and Owned Innovation Center
The Gulf Coast Innovation Center will provide cultural, technological, and business programs such as: a media and arts center to offer workshops, exhibitions, and lectures; a hub for small businesses to cultivate and grow; a space that can be rented and used for the local community’s needs; and somewhere for the business owners, developers, and dreamers to learn and grow together as they re-create a thriving Africatown region.
The project aims to be a beacon of generational hope, growth, and connection for Prichard and the Africatown region. Dreamed up by the Prichard community, collaborators, and youth, this economic hub offers a space for cultural exchange and economic development through a wide range of micro-retail offerings, workshops, exhibitions as well as rentable spaces where local business owners, developers, and dreamers can start and grow.
Project Details
Project: New Construction, Commercial
Location: Prichard, AL
Status: Concept Design Completed April 2025
Spaces for: Economic Development, Retail
Client: Port of Africatown
DJDS Team: Tola Thomas, Shelley Roberts, Deanna Van Buren, Maurice Robb, Athena Do
Beauty and Resilience
The project’s home is located in downtown Prichard on a lot procured by the Port of Africatown (POA) in 2021. This ideal site is situated at the gateway into Africatown, with high visibility from the 165 Highway. When built, it will serve as a statement and symbol; highlighting and promoting the beauty and resilience of the Africatown region.