Mercedes-Benz has been successfully building vehicles in Tuscaloosa, Alabama for twenty years. But with a decision to move forward with two major expansion projects -- an 800,000 square foot global logistics center and a 1.3 million square foot after-sales parts hub – the company quietly began looking for new location options in Alabama, Georgia and Mississippi.

Bibb County – a rural Alabama county with a population 22,000 – was the winner of both projects. We talk Jason Hoff, CEO and President of Mercedes-Benz in the United States about the decision. But we also talk with Jeff Traywick, an economic development from the regional group the Birmingham Business Alliance who managed the project. He helped us identify and recognize two unsung heroes that made the deal possible.