Alabama got some big news this week with the announcement that TVA would seek to build two nuclear reactors at its Belle­fonte facility in Scottsboro.

Anyone who has been to Scottsboro -- particularly if they arrived in town via Alaba­ma Highway 35 from Fort Pay­ne, coming down the side of Sand Mountain -- has seen Bellefonte. To see it from the highway, one would think it was already operational. The property bears a striking re­semblance to Three Mile Is­land, with its concave-shaped concrete cooling towers built on the banks of the Tennessee River.

The fact is, the plant has never been operational. Belle­fonte was built, then shuttered decades ago without ever pro­ducing one nuclear watt of power.

In the years since, though, opposition to nuclear energy has subsided. In fact, many of those who once raised the loud­est opposition, the environ­mental lobby, are now some of the industry's most vocal sup­porters.

Provided there aren't any accidents or sabotage at a nu­clear plant, it's easy to see why people are coming around to nuclear energy. Cost-wise, it's starting to look like a fairly cheap long-term option. Most importantly, however, it doesn't burn fossil fuels, pro­duces negligible pollution (if properly maintained, of course) and cuts the country's dependence on foreign oil.

Having lived in Scottsboro for about two and a half years, I can also tell you what this news means to one of our state's most picturesque cities.

When Bellefonte was being built, 2,000 or more workers had moved to the town, expect­ing to find long-term employ­ment. They built the facility, but just prior to its completion, the project was mothballed. Most of those workers had to move elsewhere to find work.

Scottsboro had about 13,000 people, maybe a few more, when Bellefonte was moth­balled. As you can imagine, los­ing 2,000 people out of 13,000 is a significant chunk of one's city to lose.

Perhaps even worse, the Bellefonte towers stood empty this whole time, teasing the city daily with the images of what might have been.

For years, every politician that came through Scottsboro talked of reopening Bellefonte. The issue was at the front and center of every chamber of commerce dinner, every plan­ning session. I've been in Sen. Jeff Sessions' Washington, D.C. office twice; a large pic­ture of Bellefonte hung near his desk like a rifle target.

When I heard the news that Bellefonte was going live again, I tried to reach an old friend with the Greater Jack­son County Chamber of Com­merce, Rick Roden. Rick, the most optimistic person I know, always talked of Bellefonte in positive terms. "We're close," he would say. "It's really going to happen soon -- I can feel it!"

TVA must still finalize its li­cense to operate, but that's ex­pected to be a mere formality.

I haven't been able to reach Rick yet, but I can see the gleam from his wide smile all the way from Prattville. I know the townsfolk must be happy to know their dream is finally coming true.

Alabama has had tons of good news lately. This news is special to me, because I've seen firsthand the frustration