The Birmingham City Council on Tuesday voted unanimously to approve the rezoning of a property that will house the Fountain Heights Farm’s Market and Kitchen.

The market, a project of the Fountain Heights Cooperative, broke ground July 9 at 1201 16th St. N. Organizers say it will serve as a permanent space dedicated to food access, education and entrepreneurship in the historic Fountain Heights neighborhood.

This initiative will serve the 3,000 residents in the Fountain Heights community and provide local farmers with the space to store and sell their goods.

Councilor LaTonya Tate contributed $17,000 in federal ARPA funds to help with the expansion.

“This organization has a lot of pride in our community and has helped us to really put this land to use through their hard work, sweat and dedication to providing clean, healthy food to our residents,” Tate said. “I’m so excited to see this expansion and for what this will mean for people experiencing food insecurities in our district. All of this intersects when we’re talking about improving quality of life. It starts with having access to healthy foods and I just have to publicly thank Dominique and her group for everything they’ve done.”

The co-founder of the Fountain Heights Cooperative, M. Dominique Villanueva, said their goal is to provide an additional 25,000 pounds of nutritious, local food in the first year to the residents in Fountain Heights and surrounding neighborhoods, which the USDA defines as food deserts. Organizers expect the project to create nine jobs earning $20 an hour or more.

Wenonah Road Guardrail

In other business, the council approved a grant application with the Alabama Department of Transportation to provide funding for the installation of a guardrail along Wenonah Road and 22nd Street Southwest.

Council President Pro Tem Wardine Alexander said this stretch of road has been a hazard for many years.

“Those of us who’ve lived in this area for any length of time know that this is a much needed safety measure,” Alexander said. “I’m confident in this administration’s ability to compete for a grant to help us make this area safer for our residents.”

The estimated cost of the project is $1.5 million, with the city offering a grant match of $750,000 if the application is successful.