Phenix City, Alabama

Phenix City, Alabama
City
Aerial view of Phenix City (c. 2009)
Flag Seal
Location of Phenix City in Lee and Russell counties, Alabama.
Phenix City, Alabama Location in the United States
Coordinates: 32°28′15″N 85°00′10″W / 32.47083°N 85.00278°W / 32.47083; -85.00278
Country	United States
State	Alabama
Counties	Russell, Lee
Government
• Mayor	Eddie N. Lowe (D)
Area [1]
• Total	28.25 sq mi (73.17 km2)
• Land	28.14 sq mi (72.87 km2)
• Water	0.11 sq mi (0.29 km2)
Elevation	243 ft (74 m)
Population  (2020)
• Total	38,817
• Density	1,379.58/sq mi (532.65/km2)
Time zones	UTC-6 (CST (de jure))
• Summer (DST)	UTC-5 (CDT (de jure))
	UTC-5 (EST (de facto))
• Summer (DST)	UTC-4 (EDT (de facto))
ZIP codes	36867-36870
Area code	334
FIPS code	01-59472
GNIS feature ID	0155193
Website	phenixcityal.us

Phenix City is a city in Lee and Russell counties in the U.S. state of Alabama, and the county seat of Russell County.^[2] As of the 2020 Census, the population of the city was 38,817.

Phenix City lies immediately west across the Chattahoochee River from Columbus, Georgia and observes Eastern Time on a de facto basis (in contrast to the rest of Alabama, which observes Central Time) due to Phenix City's strong economic ties to Columbus. Most of Phenix City is included in the Columbus Metropolitan Statistical Area, and the remainder is in Lee County and therefore included in the Auburn, Alabama Metropolitan Statistical Area. The entire city is part of the Columbus-Auburn-Opelika Combined Statistical Area.

In 2007, BusinessWeek named Phenix City the nation's No. 1 Best Affordable Suburb to raise a family.^[3] It is home to Chattahoochee Valley Community College, a public, two-year college with an acceptance rate of 100%.^[4] Troy University has a satellite campus in Phenix City.

As of 2023, the mayor is Eddie N. Lowe, the city's first black mayor elected by the public. The city manager, who holds the task of organizational matters, is Wallace Hunter.