A campus reborn: Hub in the Hills plans to open this spring

by

Hub in the Hills, a new center for nonprofits and service organizations, is expected to officially open to the public in Vestavia Hills this spring, bringing the community and families resources for learning, connection and service.

Ammie Akin, an educator with more than 20 years of experience, and her husband, Will, a principal of Capital Growth Real Estate, purchased the former Vestavia Hills Elementary Central property at 1289 Montgomery Highway in 2024 from the Vestavia Hills Board of Education for $1.25 million.

“What was once the former Vestavia Hills Elementary School Central building will now be a hub and gathering space for things like local nonprofits and a church plant, which plans to meet at the space on the weekends,” Ammie Akin said.

“I like to tell people this campus is really a variety of things offered,” she said. “It will serve families, adults with disabilities, students ministries and the broader community. I think people are very eager to not only be a part of this but also to learn more about it.”

Committed Spaces

So far, three organizations have committed to leasing space at Hub in the Hills — Alabama Game Changers (which serves students with specific learning difficulties), Redemption Hill Church and Unless U (which offers continuing education opportunities to adults with developmental disabilities). But Ammie Akin is careful to not call them tenants. She prefers to refer to them as “mission carriers” who “bring purpose into every space they touch.”

Alabama Game Changers Executive Director Shannon Weaver said her organization is so excited to be partnering with the Akins on this project.

“Not only will we have a space that helps reduce overhead, and we don’t have to continue passing costs to our clients, but we get to be a part of a project where everyone is focused on serving others,” Weaver said. “That is the heart of Game Changers, so we are very excited to see all of this come to fruition.”

Alabama Game Changers helps promote literacy, and it aims to prevent academic failure and eliminate the social and emotional challenges that students with specific learning difficulties face.

Initially located in Riverchase, Alabama Game Changers will officially relocate to the Vestavia Hills space in the spring.

“When you link up with others that have hearts to serve their community, that is just a winning combination all around,” Weaver said. “We love the mission of Ammie and Will, and everything they do, they do with excellence, so I know we will have a safe and beautiful space that will not only allow us to take care of the community at hand, but…allow us to grow in ways we can help others.”

Currently Alabama Game Changers has 26 staff members. A portion of their space at Hub in the Hills will serve as their medical center, which will not be a shared space. On the second floor, they will have an occupational therapy area, as well as evaluation spaces.

Weaver said the evaluation spaces will comply with healthy privacy laws, so Alabama Game Changers will be able to share that particular space with Redemption Hill Church, which will meet in the spaces on the weekends.

Unless U offers small-group academic, life skills, social skills and fine arts instructional services for adults with developmental disabilities. The organization is based on Chestnut Street near Vestavia Hills Methodist Church and has a second location for its Post Place program in the Century Park South office complex near Tyler Road.

“Hub in the Hills represents possibility for us,” said Lindy Williamson Cleveland, founder and executive director of Unless U. “It is a possibility for more students, more families, more programming and more community connection. We are stepping into a space that was truly designed with inclusion and belonging in mind.”

Cleveland said Hub in the Hills is not just additional square footage for Unless U but a reflection of the belief that adults with developmental disabilities deserve state-of-the-art spaces, opportunities and community.

Between Unless U and the Post Place program, there are about 50 employees, and Cleveland anticipates an expansion of that number once they move into Hub in the Hills.

“We are most excited that the space was designed with our students in mind,” Cleveland said. “The gym, the cafeteria, the adaptive spaces — every part reflects dignity, belonging and joy. It allows us to serve our students with excellence. Our hope is always to be a place where every person is cherished, celebrated and empowered.”

Will Akin said 41,000 square feet of the Hub in the Hills building are already leased or committed to ministry partners, and there are approximately 14,000 square feet of exclusive space remaining that can be leased and approximately 25,000 square feet of space that will be shared by the various groups.

Growing Momentum

Ammie Akin said as word has spread about Hub in the Hills, momentum has grown with interest from the overall community, as well as potential donors.

“I frequently get questions from people asking what we are doing over here with the school and when we plan to open,” she said. “It is exciting for us to see the community curious about what we are doing. This space was such an important part of the Vestavia Hills community for more than three decades, so we know that those who grew up in this area would like to see this space utilized.”

The Akins have secured roughly $4.5 million in donations and low-interest impact loans from donors and partners who share the vision for Hub in the Hills.

“Our partners share our heart for redemptive impact and want to help ensure we open the campus debt free,” Will Akin said.

The project is estimated to cost a total of roughly $8 million.

Physical Campus Changes

“We are really excited to see it all come together and take shape,” Ammie Akin said. “I think visually a lot of the work that has happened over the last few months may feel a little slow, but there has been so much work going on behind the scenes that may not be visible. It is very exciting to know that soon the interior work will be completed.”

One of the first orders of business at the property was to add much-needed parking spaces.

“If you grew up in Vestavia, you will likely remember how the parking was always a bit sparse at the school,” Ammie Akin said. “If there was ever a school assembly or something, you would have to park at the Walmart and run across Highway 31. The first thing that officially happened at the property was to haul off 1,600 tons of dirt and add 100 parking spaces, making it 150 parking spaces in total, so while it wasn’t necessarily visually exciting, it was very important.”

A 7,400-square-foot building in front of the school that most recently was used by Impact Family Counseling was torn down to make way for the extra parking.

The Akins said the site work and parking lot are scheduled to be completed by the end of February and the interior construction will begin in January.

Ammie Akin likes to tell people that Hub in the Hills is not just a place; it’s a movement.

“We can do so much more and serve more people when we come together,” she said. “Right now, we have a lot of momentum, and we are looking to just keep that momentum growing.”

For more information about the project or ways to become involved, visit hubinthehills.org.