View from the Top: Huntsville isn’t just smart - this is why it’s also cool

This is an opinion column

Today’s guest columnist is Dexter Strong

Like many millennial Huntsville natives, I grew up assuming I would eventually leave our city for a bigger, more exciting one. I did exactly that. But when work and family brought me back in 2018, I didn’t just return to a “Smart Place”—I came back to what has quietly become a cool place. So what, exactly, makes Huntsville cool?

Huntsville is no longer a hidden gem. Tech and federal services anchor our economy, with biotech and advanced manufacturing rising quickly behind them. We’re routinely ranked among the best cities to live, raise a family, and find a highly educated peer group. These monikers are earned. In the “Rocket City,” it’s not uncommon to find yourself chatting with a literal rocket scientist at a bar. But