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Nick Sellers wins annual tourism economic development award

Nick Sellers of Alabama Power recently won the Alabama Restaurant and Hospitality Association’s (ARHA) annual Stars of the Industry award for tourism-related economic development, according to an ARHA press release.

The presentation was made at the Grand Bohemian Hotel in Mountain Brook at the association’s annual awards dinner honoring outstanding contributions to the restaurant, lodging and tourism industries.

“The Stars awards dinner is our chance to recognize those who have demonstrated excellence and serve as an inspiration to others in the industry and our community. On behalf of ARHA, I am proud of the to present Mr. Sellers with this award for his contributions to tourism and the economic impact that it has on our state,” Mindy B. Hanan, president and CEO of ARHA, said.

This coveted annual award is peer-nominated and winners are selected by the ARHA’s board of directors. Sellers currently serves as the vice president of Alabama Power’s Mobile division, after recently being promoted from his position as Southern Power’s senior vice president for business origination.

Sellers served for many years as a member of the Birmingham-Jefferson Convention Complex’s (BJCC) board of directors and was chairman of the facilities committee, which raised the $300 million in funding necessary to build a brand new sports stadium in downtown Birmingham, including a complete renovation of the BJCC arena. This project is expected to positively impact the Magic City’s hospitality industry for decades to come by bringing a wide variety of sports and entertainment events to Alabama.

He also served for many years as a member of the board of directors for the Alabama Sports Foundation (ASF), working on events such as the Magic City Classic and the SEC Baseball Tournament, which were previously managed by ASF. When the ASF decided to focus on youth sports, he took the initiative to form a replacement organization called the Alabama Sports Council (ASC).

Now, the ASC actively recruits and manages a wide variety of amateur sports events to be hosted here in the Yellowhammer State. They currently host the Magic City Classic, SEC Baseball Tournament, Davis Cup and many other big-name amateur sporting events.

Sellers is a multi-time past member of Yellowhammer Multimedia’s Power and Influence List, having previously served as Alabama Power’s vice president of regulatory and corporate affairs and vice president of corporate relations.

Sean Ross is a staff writer for Yellowhammer News. You can follow him on Twitter @sean_yhn

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