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.
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.
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.
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 –
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.
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.
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.
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.
The Birmingham City Council on Tuesday secured funding for improvements at Rickwood Field in preparation for the MLB coming to town next summer for a tribute game. Councilors approved an agreement for the city PACE Board to issue $4.5 million in bonds through PNC bank. It also during the year has approved several allocations totaling about $2.5 million for renovations at the field, and it recently approved allocations of $150,000 a year for three years to the Friends of Rickwood Field. Read more.
It’s not about Birmingham-Southern College; it’s about the residents of Birmingham. That’s what Birmingham City Council President Wardine Alexander said Tuesday in her dissent from passage of a resolution pledging city dollars to support BSC, a private college, if the institution is able to obtain additional funding from the state. Read more.
