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VALLEY — At 11:30 a.m. EST on Monday, the Greater Valley Area Chamber of Commerce hosted a ribbon cutting on a very  busy stretch of Highway 29 in Valley. It wasn’t being done to welcome a new business into the local area but to recognize a change in ownership for a long-established business.

What had been Century 21 Wood Real Estate is now Century 21 Prestige Real Estate.

Debbie Wood, the long-time owner of the business, is still with the company as an agent but won’t be devoting as much the to it as she has in the past. This will free her up to devote more time to being the representative of House District 38 and a growing role in the Alabama State House.

The new owner is Marc Lundberg of Chattanooga, Tennessee. He’s over 13 Century 21 offices in Tennessee and Alabama. These include the main office in Chattanooga and additional offices in Nashville, Hendersonville, Monteagle, Dickson and Spring City in Tennessee and Huntsville (where there are two offices), Ardmore, Birmingham, Prattville and Valley in Alabama.

Lundbergwas present for the ribbon cutting and told the crowd present that he saw the event as a celebration of the good work being done out of the office by the staff of current agents. “This is all about you,” he said. “I want to thank Debbie Wood for getting me into this market. She has helped me with everything about this area. We thank the people of the Greater Valley Area for their business in the past and hope you will continue to do business with us in the future.”

Mayor Leonard Riley congratulated Wood on her sale of the business and welcomed Lundberg into the local business community. “It’s an older business that has been successful,” he said. “We thank you, Mr. Lundberg, for coming here to Valley. We hope you continue the success Century 21 has had here.”

The ceremony also marked the announcement of Lori Terry’s promotion to broker. “We are still with Century 21,” she said. “The transition in ownership began in August, and we are excited about where we are heading. We think we will be better able to serve the community in being part of Century 21 Prestige. We want everyone to know we will continue providing the same high quality of service we have been providing. We will also be able to do some new things to better serve you.”

The current staff of Century 21’s Valley office has a combined experience of 109 years in local real estate. The staff includes Lori Terry along with office manager Mandy Poer and sales agents Debbie Wood, Julie Wood, Cecelia Fuller, Marilyn Pittman and Wanda Morris.