Birmingham City Council

Council Approves $150K for Project to Provide High-Level Training to Junior Tech Workers

The Birmingham City Council on Tuesday voted to spend $150,000 on a project to transition junior developers and engineers in the tech industry into more senior-level positions.  The group tasked with developing this program, called the Birmingham Upskill Partnership Initiative, is the regional technology association TechBirmingham. Deon Gordon, president and CEO of TechBirmingham, said stakeholders in the tech industry have noticed a dearth of workers with senior-level skill sets. Read more.

by Daniel Gaddy

Council Votes Down Zoning Change for Planned East Lake Business Over Parking

Courtney Jones said he was surprised when the Birmingham City Council voted on Tuesday to deny a zoning change as part of his plans to create an events center in the East Lake community. “I was floored, to put it in layman’s terms,” he said in an interview after the meeting. Jones owns the building at 6900 Second Ave. S., where he hopes to establish Atlas 360, a business hosting weddings, corporate events and private parties. Read more.

by Daniel Gaddy

Birmingham Council Extends Timeline to Build on Old Ramsay-McCormack Property

The Birmingham City Council on Tuesday extended an agreement with developers tasked with constructing a five-story commercial building at the former site of Ensley’s Ramsay-McCormack tower, a long-derelict structure that the community lobbied for decades to have destroyed. The council voted unanimously to extend the agreement with Ensley District Developers from Dec. 31 to June 30, 2025. Read more.

by Daniel Gaddy

City OK’s $5 Million to Help Keep BSC Open

The Birmingham City Council on Tuesday approved $5 million in funding to help keep Birmingham-Southern College operating. The city will provide BSC a $2.5 million loan that will be forgiven provided BSC opens classes in the fall and a 20-year loan for the same amount to be repaid at a 1% interest rate. Read more.

by Virginia Martin

New Community Center Planned for Old Bank Building in Ensley

The Birmingham City Council on Tuesday approved selling a former AmSouth Bank building in Ensley to Alpha Phi Alpha Fraternity so it can establish a community center there. The Mu Psi Lambda chapter of the fraternity intends to refurbish the building and transform it into a multi-purpose outreach center to serve as a resource to the Ensley community by eliminating blight, providing youth and community training programs and other services. Read more.

by Virginia Martin

Birmingham City Council Appoints New Committees

The Birmingham City Council approved new committee assignments on Tuesday, after new council officers were chosen recently. The Council approved new committee assignments, which will be for a term of two years. Two new committees were created in the process, the Community Development Committee and the Workforce Development Committee.  Chairs of the new committees –

by Virginia Martin

O’Quinn Elected President of the Birmingham City Council — Again

The Birmingham City Council in a special called meeting Friday elected Darryl O’Quinn as its president on a 5-3-1 vote after the legality of his initial election, on Tuesday, came under questioning. Read more.

by Virginia Martin

Birmingham Council Elects O’Quinn, Alexander to Lead in the Next Two Years

Birmingham City Councilor Darrell O’Quinn on Tuesday took on the mantle of council president, and former President Wardine Alexander stepped into the president pro tem position. Read more.

by Virginia Martin

Get Your Children to School, Woodfin Tells Parents

Mayor Randall Woodfin said Tuesday that Birmingham schools have unusually large numbers of truant students and, if he has to, he’ll push for parents to be held legally accountable for allowing their children to stay home from school. Ten weeks into the school year, well more than half of third graders are considered truants, which means they have seven or more unexcused absences, Woodfin said. “It’s unacceptable,” the mayor said. “Teachers cannot teach your child if they are not in class.” Read more.

by Virginia Martin

Birmingham Council Amends Laws Affecting Predatory Towing, Plan More Changes

The Birmingham City Council wrestled with the issue of predatory towing this week and passed two ordinances to start addressing the problems. Councilor Darrell O’Quinn, who heads the council’s transportation committee, has worked to resolve complaints on both issues since 2017. After council approval of the ordinances, he called the action “a milestone because it has been a lot of effort.” Read more.

by Virginia MacDonald