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The Jefferson County Commission on Tuesday transferred the license agreement for the Greater Birmingham Humane Society from its location near the airport to the soon-to-open, newly constructed facility on Sydney Drive near Lakeshore Parkway.
“The partnership with the Humane Society has been one of mutual benefit. We get our work done and many, many more of our animals are saved and are able to be adopted,” Commissioner President Jimmie Stephens said during the commission meeting. “It’s worked out to be a good arrangement, and this is just a continuation of that.”
The move comes as GBHS continues a legal fight against the Nebius hyperscale data center being constructed nearby. GBHS has planned a $67 million medical campus at the site, but news of the nearby data center cost the group almost $20 million of the donations that had been pledged. The CEO has said she’s unsure whether the full plan will be able to move forward after that.
The license approved Tuesday is for the first building of the planned complex, which is designed to house animals.
“That is a county building,” GBHS Marketing Director Stephanie Salvago said. “We have the contract, so we have to go where the county tells us to go as far as (the) building (we use).
“Obviously, it is an ongoing (situation),” Salvago continued. “We have sued the City of Birmingham and we’ve also sued Nebius because we would not like for them to be built next to each other. No one has been able to know what the effects are going to be on the animals and the staff that will be in those buildings. But since the building is not complete yet, as it is right now, we still have the contract and we’ll still be moving in.”
This is the second time GBHS’ plans for a campus expansion have been affected by a planned data center. It had earlier been approved to build on a property in North Titusville and had spent millions on the plans before the deal fell through because DC Blox proposed to build a data center at the same site.
The head of GBHS has worried that the group cannot afford to walk away from its investment again. The medical center is the second, unfinished phase of the project.
SpongeBob in the House
In a lighter moment, SpongeBob SquarePants made an appearance in the commission meeting, adorning a tie worn by David Rich, the new director of G. Ross Bell Juvenile Detention Center.
“You guys caught me wearing a SpongeBob tie today (and) I’m gonna tell you why,” Rich said when addressing commissioners. “We just passed our accreditation for the year yesterday for DYS (Alabama Department of Youth Services), so I figured I’d walk around celebrating with that SpongeBob tie for all the kids today. I did not wear a SpongeBob tie in your honor.”
Stephens said Rich is welcome to wear SpongeBob any time. Commissioner Joe Knight followed with a dining question.
“Are you going to treat us all to the Krusty Krab?” he joked of the fictional restaurant of the cartoon series.
Said Rich: “I can tell you this: I’ve eaten a lot of food inside of a lot of different correctional facilities. If you come down, we will feed you well.”
Leadership at juvenile detention is now new with the arrival of Rich and Assistant Director Gwen Johnson, who worked more than 20 years in juvenile probation in neighboring Family Court. The new director said he wants juveniles in his charge to be active.
“One of the worst things you can do in any detention/correctional setting is have people sitting around,” Rich said. “The idle hand and mind (are) the devil’s playground. I’m a big proponent of finding activities for these residents, these juveniles, to do so they’re just not sitting in the units, just watching TV and getting at each other.”
Rich cited a music room that’s been developed at the center. He added that there are some people who come in to deliver oral histories.
“I want to get more of these kids outside during the day,” Rich said. “Not just during the structured gym time, but at other times. I’m a huge proponent of education. I’m an educator by heart and my staff already know. There should be no reason why these kids aren’t going to these classes unless we’ve got a serious thing going on.
“I have worked at a facility where I had mental health inmates learning how to garden,” he continued. “We’ve got space to do it. I’m pretty open to being innovative. So long as there’s a productive activity behind it. That takes time, takes staff. You’ve got to have the supervision there to make sure we can do it.”
Business developments approved
The commission also approved a pair of economic development projects.
U.S. Steel Seamless Tubular Operations LLC is investing $463 million, with $222 million for the building and $241 million for equipment. The company received approval for a grant for new jobs created with the project, which was discussed during Tuesday’s commission committee meeting.
The project is expected to create 152 jobs with an average salary of $35.36 per hour. This request comes on the heels of the commission abating noneducation sales and use taxes during the construction phase and a 10-year abatement of noneducation property taxes.
The abatement package and jobs grant are capped at $456,000. The county is expected to experience a $686,201 return on its investment.
Drummond Company also was granted abatement of noneducational taxes. The county is expected to experience a $686,201 return on its investment.
The Drummond project is being done through ABC Coke at 900 Huntsville Avenue in Tarrant. The company is making a total capital investment of almost $183 million to construct, equip and install replacement coke ovens and equipment to support foundry operations.
