BW Recommends | October 25, 2026 - BirminghamWatch

BW Recommends | October 25, 2026

News and features you might have missed this week from around the region.

October 25, 2026

BW Recommends is a rundown of stories you might have missed this week. It offers insight into issues important to our area and sometimes tickles your curiosity. Soon we’ll be offering Recommends via email. Sign up here to receive it. You can also sign up for The WeeklyWatch, the stories we’ve published over the previous seven days, and Monday Morning Watch, a roundup of public meetings scheduled for that week.

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Tuberville releases ‘Back to Basics: The Golden Age Playbook’ outlining game plan if elected (1819 News)

U.S. Sen. Tommy Tuberville, the Republican nominee for governor, has promised voters that under his leadership, Alabama will be in its “Golden Age.” Now, he is sharing a detailed playbook on how he plans to get the state there. Tuberville’s playbook has seven priorities: bring the jobs home, affordability, education, smaller government means lower taxes, safe streets and safe homes, infrastructure and health care.

Campaigning around Alabama, Doug Jones tries to open a path for Democrats (Alabama Reflector)

Doug Jones said in a recent interview that running for governor in Alabama as a Democrat remains an “uphill chug.” Recent polls are showing Tuberville with support from 51% of voters in Alabama and Jones with 39%. But for Jones, winning on Nov. 3 might be less a marker of success than rebuilding the Democratic Party.

Central Alabama Water delays vote on rate increase for 2027 (WBRC)

The Central Alabama Water Board tabled a vote on a proposed rate increase for customers in 2027. The board delayed action after being presented with a recommendation to raise water rates by 6.4%. The discussion about raising 2027 user prices comes just weeks after the board endorsed changing the utility’s rate structure, a move expected to raise monthly bills for about 90% of residential customers.

City of Birmingham to buy downtown tower for $11 million (AL.com)

Birmingham is preparing to buy Renasant Place, at 2001 Park Place North, for $11 million. The building will give the city more office space in one consolidated location.

Birmingham Civil Rights Institute celebrates Alabama’s 14 HBCUs with new exhibit (WVTM)

Alabama’s 14 historically Black colleges and universities have helped shape generations of leaders, educators and changemakers. Now, their stories are being brought together under one roof. The Birmingham Civil Rights Institute opened its newest exhibit, “Historically Black: An Exhibit Honoring Alabama’s HBCU Legacy,” on Friday, celebrating the history, culture and lasting impact of the state’s HBCUs. The exhibit features historical photographs, documents, artifacts and memorabilia highlighting everything from marching bands and homecoming traditions to the role these institutions played in the fight for civil rights.

‘Our students deserve to be comfortable’: Air conditioning coming to all Jefferson County School buses (WBRC)

The Jefferson County Board of Education has approved a bid to retrofit about 500 buses with air conditioning. “The intense heat of this past summer was a clear reminder of just how extreme Alabama temperatures can get,” Dr. Walter Gonsoulin, superintendent of Jefferson County Schools, said. “While our buses have operated for years without A/C, that doesn’t mean we should continue that way. Our students deserve to be comfortable on their rides to school, and our drivers deserve a comfortable working environment.” The goal is to have the buses retrofitted by the hotter months of 2027.

A Homeowner’s Last Stand Against Alabama Power (Inside Climate News)

Fenn Church was ready to confront the utility if it tried to run transmission lines across his property. He’d already won a court ruling temporarily blocking Alabama Power from exercising its eminent domain, but a higher court disagreed. Church had contacted his representatives and then social media to rally supporters to stand with him at the entrance to his property.

The company went around back.