Congratulations to Leigh Monitor, of Nashville! Her entry was randomly selected in our Wade on Birmingham 10th anniversary book giveaway.
I’ve mailed her an autographed paperback copy of my new book, “The Future of Birmingham” (in fact, the only signed copy to date). If you’d like a free copy, download one by filling out the form on this special page.
Thanks to everyone who entered!
Photo: Patrick Cain (CC)
Birmingham (click to enlarge)
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By James Spann
I have fond memories of Birmingham as a child.
In the 1960s, I lived in Greenville, but my mom’s folks were from St. Clair County. And when we visited them, a trip to Birmingham was almost always on the agenda. The city was truly magical. Listening to WSGN, the Big 610. Shopping for Christmas at the big stores downtown like Loveman’s. Hanging out at the brand new Eastwood Mall. Hopping on the rides at the Alabama State Fair at Five Points West. Watching Cousin Cliff on television.
Fast-forward to September 1979, when I started my Birmingham TV career at WAPI-13 (now WVTM). I was 23 and, somehow, Wendell Harris hired me to be their main weather guy at that incredibly young age.
A few months after I was hired, reporter Steve Sanders did a series called “Is the Magic Missing?” focusing on population loss, job market deterioration and a public education system that was faltering.
It seems like we have no self-esteem 36 years later, despite the wonderful things happening in this city.
I find it interesting that the same trolls who attack me during any winter forecast come out any time you say something positive about Birmingham. Ignore them; they aren’t worth my time, or yours.
People mocked Don Logan for moving the Birmingham Barons from Hoover back into the city a few years ago. It was a bold move, but it is paying rich dividends with record crowds.
When Trinity Medical Center moves this week to its incredible new Grandview Medical Center campus on U.S. 280, it is in the city limits. This is a huge positive for the city. [Editor’s note: James Spann has served as chair of Trinity’s board of trustees since 2005.]
Drive through downtown on a weekend, and it is buzzing with life. Loft living, new restaurants and stores, Railroad Park.
Is there crime? Of course. But crime exists in every Alabama municipality and county. Are there problems to solve? Yep. Biggest issues are fixing Birmingham schools and finding a good mass transit solution.
But the positives outweigh the negatives by far.
The future of Birmingham is:
And, most importantly, our future is regaining self-esteem.
I was honored to receive two major awards for a broadcast meteorologist. When I accepted the American Meteorological Society Award for Broadcast Meteorology at its 2013 meeting in Austin, I was proud to be associated with Birmingham at this international science gathering.
Same at the 2012 National Weather Association meeting when I accepted their Broadcaster of the Year award in Madison, Wisc. In fact, many asked me how they could break into our market and move here.
This is a special city with a bright future. I am proud to be from Birmingham and Alabama. You need to feel the same way. Let’s enjoy the ride back to being the Magic City.
• • •
James Spann is chief meteorologist for Birmingham’s ABC 33/40, joining 1 month after the station signed on in 1996. In all, he has been a TV weather anchor for 36 years.
• • •
The full version of this essay and many more are available in the free ebook, “The Future of Birmingham.”
All you need to do is fill out this simple form. We’ll email you a link to download the book. (And, at no extra charge, we’ll add you to the mailing list for the free Y’all Connect newsletter.)
• • •
Read more essays in our special 10th anniversary series, The Future of Birmingham.
Entrepreneur and blogger Stacey Ferguson gives the opening
keynote at the Y’all Connect conference in Birmingham.
Technology is a ripe area for startups in the city.
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By Jen Barnett
The future of Birmingham could be pretty much like its past: decided by the good citizens of Mountain Brook and officials from the City of Birmingham with little-to-no input from residents.
Occasionally, these two disparate groups produce fabulous offspring, like the Sidewalk Film Festival, Railroad Park or Regions Field. More often than not, they lock horns and produce nothing. So, when considering the future of Birmingham, my first thought was “Who cares?”
But … I do. God help me, I fucking do.
If we’re smart, we can build our own future through entrepreneurship.
These are the lessons I’ve learned from having businesses here, the ones I keep in mind as I think about next steps:
1. Plant the acorn with the knowledge that you may never see (or own) the oak. We wouldn’t have a Saturn or an Iron City if Bottletree hadn’t arrived.
2. Build a business in the tech sector. It’s the city’s blind spot for regulation, it’s a foreign language to the good ol’ boy network, and it won’t shackle you to local economic factors. Plus, you could bring in much-needed dollars from outside Alabama.
3. Don’t take private investment. Instead …
4. Build your own capital from a business you don’t necessarily love before launching your passion project. Shipt chief executive officer Bill Smith created his wealth with Easy Money and Insight Card Services. Avondale Brewery founder Coby Lake bought rental properties. If you’re a specialist, and a damned good one, you’ll have better odds than generalists like me when bootstrapping a business you love.
5. Spend more of your energy building people up, or working on your own idea, than bitching about someone else’s efforts. Bitch a little (you’re only human) to keep yourself competitive. Keep it off social media.
6. Do it more for the struggle than for the outcome. Like I said in No. 1, you may never see the outcome, but the struggle can be a lot of fun, with the right attitude.
7. If you’re going to tilt at windmills, choose ones that matter. Education, transportation, income inequality, science, arts and medicine are good ones. (#FireRayWatts is a personal fave.) Your neighbors’ lawn ornaments or sex lives aren’t.
8. Find strength in numbers. You don’t need money or power to get started if you’ve got friends. Entrepreneur Rebecca Davis and filmmaker Jen West both conducted successful crowdfunding campaigns for their projects. To make crowdsourcing work for you, make lots and lots of friends. (Loners are easier to exploit and marginalize.)
9. Develop a thick skin. The harder you try, the more haters you’ll have. This is absolutely inevitable. You don’t have to be a flippant dick about them (“haters gon’ hate”), just learn to deal.
10. If you make it in Birmingham, stay in Birmingham. That’s not a mandate, just my personal plea. Mentor someone. Buy Quinlan Castle and build a moat around it. Whatever it takes to keep you engaged with the city.
If you follow these lessons and your heart, your life will be so full of passion and purpose that you’ll hardly notice what’s lacking in Birmingham.
• • •
Jen Barnett is a Birmingham-based entrepreneur and marketing strategy consultant.
• • •
The full version of this essay and many more are available in the free ebook, “The Future of Birmingham.”
All you need to do is fill out this simple form. We’ll email you a link to download the book. (And, at no extra charge, we’ll add you to the mailing list for the free Y’all Connect newsletter.)
• • •
Read more essays in our special 10th anniversary series, The Future of Birmingham.
Photo: Chris Denbow (CC)
Birmingham mayor Larry Langford once led a prayer rally to
fight crime, dressed in a sackcloth. The city’s prayers for
strong leadership have apparently gone unanswered.
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Leadership is tough.
A leader can do everything right and still fall off a cliff, taking everyone with him. I’ve dropped off that perch time and again, both as leader and follower.
The absence of strong leadership has left Birmingham listless, mired in potential and indecision. Few are willing to risk their own necks for the good of the city and the region.
Ironically, the influence of strong leadership has also damaged Birmingham. In politics, Larry Langford bullied his way through half-baked ideas and get-rich schemes as president of the Jefferson County Commission and mayor of Fairfield and Birmingham. In business, Richard Scrushy built national powerhouse HealthSouth and then let his greed nearly destroy the company.
Perhaps we shy away from such alpha types because we’ve been burned again and again. Perhaps we feel stuck with the limited choices before us.
The progress Birmingham has made has been in spite of, not because of, its leadership. We’ve made baby steps, but when compared to other Southern cities of similar size, we’re falling behind.
That lack of progress stems, in part, from Birmingham’s conservative nature. Not in the sense of big-blue-dot-in-a-red-state politics, but in the taking-chances-on-even-middle-of-the-road-ideas-is-scary sense. A determined leader would have at least a couple of options, either sell everyone on the idea or barrel through regardless of buy-in.
I’ve done both. I understand that great reward is almost always worth the tiny risk, though the perception may be that the risk is enormous and the reward is negligible. The real equation for me is that the fear of regret is much bigger than the fear of failure.
The leadership vacuum isn’t merely holding Birmingham back, but actively demolishing it from within. One of the city’s crown jewels, the University of Alabama at Birmingham, is in the middle of a crisis.
President Ray Watts has transformed from harmless nobody into Public Enemy No. 1. The governing bodies for the faculty, the undergrads and the grad students have voted no confidence in him. And yet, he still stands, a tolerable mess, it appears.
We not only tolerate awful leaders, we promote them. The corporate citizenry has made its priorities clear: As long as their egos and their bank accounts are well served, any lackey will do.
What distresses me most in dealing with Birmingham’s leaders is lack of humility, this overwhelming sense of entitlement to power and money. A little chutzpah is necessary in any accomplished person, but too much poisons the spirit.
An antidote does exist. I first heard about servant leadership from meteorologist James Spann during one of his talks. What stuck with me was not only the concept, but also how he embodies it. James will admit his weaknesses and mistakes, and then apologize for them. He’s trying, and he’s willing to fail.
That is impressive. That, sadly, is all too rare.
The best future for Birmingham is strong leadership. We must insist upon it, though our options are few. We must support it and hold it accountable.
And, at times, we must take it upon ourselves. Tough as it may be, we cannot wait forever.
• • •
The full version of this essay and many more are available in the free ebook, “The Future of Birmingham.”
All you need to do is fill out this simple form. We’ll email you a link to download the book. (And, at no extra charge, we’ll add you to the mailing list for the free Y’all Connect newsletter.)
• • •
Read more essays in our special 10th anniversary series, The Future of Birmingham.
Photo: Rain0975 (CC)
“Four Spirits” in downtown’s Kelly Ingram Park memorializes the
girls killed in the 16th Street Baptist Church bombing in 1963.
Birmingham is overflowing with talented artists, and the people
who support them.
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By Jess Simpson
Ask me what could make the biggest difference in the future of Birmingham with the least muscle required (meaning unrealistic wads of money, seemingly unattainable widespread cooperation among politicians, core infrastructure evolution, etc.), and my answer is always …
Our creative capital.
Birmingham is overflowing with talented artists, musicians, filmmakers, dancers, choreographers, producers, actors, playwrights, authors, painters, sculptors, metal workers, photographers and patrons.
Ask almost anyone what they like about living in Birmingham, and they will talk about a favorite event or festival; the quality of our museums, symphony and ballet; the growing gallery and visual arts scene; the discovery of a new artist; or our ever-expanding array of top-notch performance spaces.
Anyone who doubts Birmingham’s creative capital simply isn’t paying attention.
For many years, I had the privilege of working for one of the city’s art centers, seeking performers to showcase. What I found again and again while scouting “outside” talent, is that local artists have as much or more talent than almost any other community in the land. And they consistently produce beautiful, thought-provoking work with astonishingly few resources.
In March 2015, I asked a panel of these artists, “What would happen if we dreamed big artistically?” Based on their thoughtful responses, it was clear: We have no shortage of big dreams brewing in the wings — we just the need the resources to bring them to fruition.
Finding inspiration, supporting grand thinking
Along the oceanfront promenade of Zadar, Croatia, visitors can experience the impact of visionary art. In reflecting upon my recent visit, I found my thoughts once again turning to Birmingham.
The Adriatic coastal area, once heavily bombed and scarred from war, is a magnet today for locals and tourists, thanks in large part to two public art installations. One, called the “Sea Organ,” uses air created by passing boats to create music through a series of pipes, delivering sweet sounds through the city day and night. The other, “Greeting to the Sun,” soaks up solar energy to produce a giant, out-of-this-world light show at night.
Both are free, self-perpetuating and constantly running. Universally acclaimed for creating hope and excitement where once stood only devastation and despair, these projects have helped to make Zadar one of Europe’s hottest destinations.
We have that same potential to engage and transform the world through the beauty and power of art. It requires that we, collectively and individually, make a commitment to educate, nurture, recruit and support artists.
Here’s how to start …
Creating an environment where the arts can flourish takes dedication. It also takes heart.
And, that’s where the good news keeps coming. Birmingham has a heart so big, it can’t long be denied.
• • •
Lover of a colorful story and a good margarita, Jess Simpson is a Birmingham writer chasing a dream of slow travel through a fast world. Her recently published work includes “Greetings from Birmingham” for Paste.
• • •
The full version of this essay and many more are available in the free ebook, “The Future of Birmingham.”
All you need to do is fill out this simple form. We’ll email you a link to download the book. (And, at no extra charge, we’ll add you to the mailing list for the free Y’all Connect newsletter.)
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Photo: bg5000 (CC)
Photo: Southern Foodways Alliance (CC)
While Birmingham landmark Pete’s Famous Hot Dogs no longer
operates, the Birmingham hot dog lives on at other
Greek-established restaurants. City history offers many
opportunities to attract outsiders.
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By Charles Buchanan
The future of Birmingham is in its past.
Birmingham has a lot riding on its ability to cultivate — and capitalize on — the people, places and history that give the metro area its unique personality. Developers and city planners would be wise to take a look around them. Often, those who figure out ways to incorporate elements of our local DNA are rewarded with an enthusiastic response.
Take Regions Field. Parts of its design echo the metal-casting sheds of Sloss Furnaces and the light towers of Rickwood Field. Visitors can relax in rocking chairs while eating Dreamland ribs. Since the Birmingham Barons moved to Regions Field, the team has experienced a boom in attendance.
It’s not nostalgia that’s powering such reactions from the public. Instead, I chalk it up to a growing feeling of pride in Birmingham from the people who live here, which dovetails nicely with the larger cultural emphasis on “local” in everything from vegetables to beer to art.
This homegrown enthusiasm also has the potential to help redefine Birmingham’s image across the country. I once met someone who traveled to Birmingham because he was a fan of native son Sun Ra, an innovative musician who took jazz into outer space and back. I don’t think he found much to memorialize the sonic pioneer, unfortunately. But it would be easy for Birmingham to create a music trail — along the lines of the Civil Rights Heritage Trail or even in the form of a smartphone app — to guide visitors to sites associated with the city’s rich history in jazz, R&B, rock, country, gospel and other genres.
Likewise, Birmingham could become a center for ecotourism — a sort of Asheville of the Deep South — capitalizing on its close proximity to scenic places such as the Sipsey Wilderness and the Cahaba River. Closer into town, Red Mountain Park, Ruffner Mountain, Oak Mountain and the emerging Red Rock trail system offer easy access to outdoor adventures.
In addition, no other place can lay claim to the Birmingham hot dog, the secret-sauce slathered staple invented by Greek immigrants and made famous by dozens of tiny lunch stands, including Pete’s Famous. Few of those stands remain today, but we can still champion the dog that once fueled the workers who powered Birmingham’s industries that, in turn, made America hum.
Or how about Birmingham’s Batman, Willie Perry? The good Samaritan who once rescued stranded motorists from his souped-up Batmobile is back in the civic spotlight. His car is slated for restoration, a documentary about him is in the works, and his life has inspired Willie Perry Day, a day of service to the community each Aug. 3. You won’t find many real-life superheroes out there, but we have one who remains a force for good.
These unique stories have the power to surprise people across the country who think they know all there is to know about Birmingham and Alabama. By mining our own history and culture, we can mold fresh, colorful images of the city, new symbols for an emerging metropolis.
• • •
Charles Buchanan is editor of UAB Magazine, author of “Fading Ads of Birmingham” [aff. link] and an artist.
• • •
The full version of this essay and many more are available in the free ebook, “The Future of Birmingham.”
All you need to do is fill out this simple form. We’ll email you a link to download the book. (And, at no extra charge, we’ll add you to the mailing list for the free Y’all Connect newsletter.)
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Photo: Chris Happel (CC)
Coming to Birmingham from another part of the country can
induce culture shock, but Southern hospitality and smiles
can ease the transition.
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By Bertha Hidalgo
The future of Birmingham is evolving, and that’s exciting!
I am thrilled to experience its growth, to live in a city changing for the better. I have worked for the University of Alabama at Birmingham, one of the premier medical and public health institutions, since I arrived. UAB attracts top scientists from all over the world. I have been surrounded by other transplants since Day 1 who love our city as much as I do.
But it was rough in the beginning.
I moved from Los Angeles to Birmingham in August 2007. I didn’t know anyone in town, aside from my husband. He had to work the day after we arrived, so I was left to discover the city alone. I recall leaving our apartment complex in Hoover and driving on Alabama 150. After about a mile, I pulled into an Arby’s parking lot and cried for an hour. Few things were familiar to me. My family, favorite stores, comfort food restaurants and weather … they were all missing. Everything was different.
Birmingham has changed, as has my opinion of it. Familiar stores and restaurants from L.A. are sprouting up around the city. Chipotle and Pinkberry were two eateries I missed the most. Not long after my arrival, they arrived as well. Nordstrom Rack also came and made this place feel more like home. The music and food scenes have also evolved significantly since 2007, receiving national recognition.
Some things about Birmingham — and the South — have impressed me significantly. People send handwritten notes and gifts. Strangers smile and say hello. Baggers take groceries out to the car. Life is slower in Birmingham, at least compared to Los Angeles. Time not spent in traffic driving 50 miles to work is extra time I dedicate to my family. The cost of living is incredibly lower in Birmingham than L.A., another major reason we continue to live here. In all, a more personal, higher-quality way of living — I really like that.
I have grown to love a few special things about Birmingham. I like experiencing four seasons, as mild as they may be. I really adore everyone’s passion for football, particularly because it means making and eating party food, or … shopping time. Malls and stores are ghost towns during the games. Score!
I discovered my love for the word “y’all” as well! Best. conjugation. ever.
So here I am, 8 years later, with roots in the ground and no immediate plans to leave. I’ve made great friends, many of whom I consider family. Birmingham is becoming more like the place I left and less like the place I came to in 2007.
I may never truly understand some things about Birmingham and its people. (Let’s just say I don’t get crawfish.) But it is a city that has shown me a lot of love, a place to start a family and ultimately, a place to live my life. Birmingham will forever have a place in my heart and remain a home away from home.
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Bertha Hidalgo is an assistant professor in the epidemiology department at the University of Alabama at Birmingham, an associate scientist at the UAB Nutrition and Obesity Research Center, faculty scholar at the Center for the Study of Community Health, chair of the Minority Affairs Committee for the American College of Epidemiology and blogger at Chic in Academia.
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The full version of this essay and many more are available in the free ebook, “The Future of Birmingham.”
All you need to do is fill out this simple form. We’ll email you a link to download the book. (And, at no extra charge, we’ll add you to the mailing list for the free Y’all Connect newsletter.)
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Photo: Patrick Cain (CC)
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The Two Ms. Davises
Wander block by block
to meet residents held back
by artlessness, fear.
The schools drive away
people. The politics drive
away people, too.
Only the stubborn
and the impoverished stay
behind, fate be damned.
They need their city
to be more than it is, to
be kinder, safer.
They need some steady
income, and a way to get
around easily.
The townsfolk campaign
for new leaders, not the crooks
who line their pockets.
Let Ms. Davis take
charge, they say. She’ll stand up for
our community.
Reluctantly, Ms.
Davis agrees, though her job
and kids rule her days.
“Mayor Davis Wins!”
the headlines read. City Hall
welcomes its new chief.
She fixes potholes,
fields complaints, cuts taxes and
works past 11.
The voters keep tabs
on the mayor, who always
looks out for their needs.
Her teen daughters and
little boy see her only
on TV at night.
The eldest stays with
a friend for weeks. The middle
child’s grades soon plummet.
And the youngest gets
into fights at school, so the
principal calls Mom.
The municipal
house is in order, barely.
Her house is a wreck.
“Mayor Davis Quits!”
the headlines read. City Hall
loses its old boss.
She gathers her brood
into a sweeping hug and
holds on for dear life.
Madame Mayor goes
back to humble matriarch,
putting kids to bed.
Her civic progress
was quickly undone. All the
neighbors wailed and moaned.
Ms. Davis served out
her real term to her three-child
constituency.
• • •
Essays from other contributors are available in the free ebook, “The Future of Birmingham.”
All you need to do is fill out this simple form. We’ll email you a link to download the book. (And, at no extra charge, we’ll add you to the mailing list for the free Y’all Connect newsletter.)
• • •
Read more essays in our special 10th anniversary series, The Future of Birmingham.
Photo: Lee Burchfield (CC)
St. Paul and the Broken Bones is just one of the many
Birmingham bands of late to attract a national following.
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By Kenn McCracken
The future is constantly changing, fluid and shifting with no guarantees.
Perspective changes your view of the future; your place and standing in the macrocosm, your priorities and interests and experiences — those will draw your focus of where we’re headed. As someone who has worn many hats over my four-plus decades, my perspective incorporates culture in Birmingham, both as creator and audience.
Had you asked me 5 or 10 years ago about the future of Birmingham’s music scene, I would have given you a different answer than I would today. Then, the city was less known for Verbena, Remy Zero or Azure Ray (all enjoying varying levels of success on the national scene) than for Ruben Studdard and Taylor Hicks. Local bands of all genres might draw audiences, but couldn’t draw the same level of support as cover bands like the Velcro Pygmies or the Cheesebrokers.
Even with venues like Five Points Music Hall and the Nick (not to mention the pre-corporate Oak Mountain Amphitheatre or Sloss Furnaces), seeing a rising national act required a trip to Nashville or Atlanta. The general consensus among my friends — both fans and musicians — was that Birmingham was a musical dead end.
Fast-forward to 2015, and the outlook as a city that supports music is much brighter. Venues like Iron City, Tin Roof and Saturn bring in many acts that I never would have imagined we’d see in Birmingham, and crowds come out to support those shows. (RIP Bottletree Cafe.) Birmingham Mountain Radio, which started as an Internet-only station in 2010, has expanded to the FM airwaves not only locally but also in Tuscaloosa.
I’ve lost count of local bands gone national, including Lee Bains III and the Glory Fires, Azure Ray, Duquette Johnson and A.A. Bondy (both previously in Verbena), the Great Book of John and St. Paul and the Broken Bones. This year saw the first SlossFest and the third Cask and Drum festival. And, speaking purely from someone who favors rock, Birmingham’s other genres — country, jazz and blues — all continue to thrive.
The entire time, we’ve had musicians who stayed in Birmingham despite better opportunities elsewhere. We’ve had venue managers who continued to support local music, and entrepreneurs who started venues and radio stations to provide sustenance to hungry listeners. Most importantly, we’ve had a shift in the audience, not just in tastes but also in willingness to support those bands and businesses.
All of them chose to stay, determined to change the future to suit themselves. And their efforts paid off: In the short span of 10 years, the future of Birmingham inverted itself in the musical sense.
As with so many songs, the future of Birmingham is unwritten. We the lifelong residents, we the childhood transplants, we the adult immigrants … we are the authors. If your inner musician is determined enough, positive enough and willing to smile in the face of failure, the future of Birmingham is yours to write, and to tell, and to play.
• • •
Kenn McCracken is the co-host and curator of the weekly show “(The Show With No Name)” on Birmingham Mountain Radio, bassist for the Exhibit(s) and master of his own liver.
• • •
The full version of this essay and many more are available in the free ebook, “The Future of Birmingham.”
All you need to do is fill out this simple form. We’ll email you a link to download the book. (And, at no extra charge, we’ll add you to the mailing list for the free Y’all Connect newsletter.)
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Read more essays in our special 10th anniversary series, The Future of Birmingham.
Photo: Curtis Fockele (CC)
The Drive-By Truckers perform at Iron City on Southside.
The venue has not only brought in bands from the South
but also from across the nation.
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By Jackie Lo
Those of us who love Birmingham are slowly nurturing and hand-feeding this beautiful city with our passion and adoration. Naysayers have moved from and come back to a very different city. Outsiders have taken notice, written articles, shared our secrets. But, eventually the surprise will leave their tone and will be replaced with respect and their own adoration.
More traveling bands will put a pin in Birmingham on their tour maps. More people will attend local venues. Record shops will flourish, and underground radio will thrive and shake up the quality of music that hits our airwaves. Local bands playing at home will really mean something to everyone involved.
Women will make as much money as men do at the same job. They will be free to make their own choices about their bodies and not have to worry about what the politicians at the Capital have to say about it or if their rights or clinics will be shut down. Contraceptives will be affordable, and sex education will be available to everyone.
Gay marriage will be accepted in all counties in the state, and we will look back on that day outside the courthouse and realize we saw history happen in our city. A city that helped lead civil rights for race equality has now made strides for sexual equality. LGBT couples will be able to have all of the same rights that straight couples enjoy.
Drunk driving will be greatly reduced as ridesharing options such as Uber and Lyft will be available to our city. Waiting 45 minutes for a taxi will be a thing of the past. Public transportation will be easier and available in more places. Bike sharing will be a huge success as bike lanes and walking paths will spread throughout the city.
Marijuana will be legalized. We will be one of the last states to implement it, but when we do, we will realize it isn’t the terrible monster it’s made out to be. The war on drugs and violence within our city will have one less component, and our jails won’t stay at capacity because of it.
We will have a lottery that properly funds our education system to increase the quality of schools citywide. Our kids will be smarter than we ever were and “Alabama jokes” won’t hold the same weight they once did.
We will take pride in our amazing food and drinks, and more outstanding and award-winning restaurants and bars will open and be successful. We will have more places downtown that stay open at night and more late night options as well. “Locally Sourced” and “Locally Made” will be on every new menu.
Construction will continue to boom downtown, and we will keep moving into renovated old structures that once were abandoned and in shambles. New construction will continue to be thoughtful and add interest to our skyline, and everyone will see downtown as the place I’ve always loved.
Progress. That is what the future of Birmingham holds. We’ve seen it happening. It might be slow, but that’s our brand of progress, a slow and steady growth. We have pride, and we know how to fight. Wanting more and never being quite satisfied is what sets us apart. We always appreciate what we have to work for instead of what is simply given to us.
• • •
Jackie Lo (a k a Jacklyn Loquidis Hamric) is editor in chief of the blog I Am the F-Bomb, DJ for the weekly “Jackie Lo Show” on Substrate Radio, interior designer at Cohen Carnaggio Reynolds and a musician.
• • •
The full version of this essay and many more are available in the free ebook, “The Future of Birmingham.”
All you need to do is fill out this simple form. We’ll email you a link to download the book. (And, at no extra charge, we’ll add you to the mailing list for the free Y’all Connect newsletter.)
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Photos: Hugh Hunter. Reprinted with permission.
Regions Field shows how big ideas in Birmingham come to life
through civic partnership and determination.
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By Hugh Hunter
Birmingham has had big ideas in its past, from the original Vulcan statue created in 1903 and its recent renovation, through the rise of the University of Alabama at Birmingham, to Railroad Park and Regions Field.
Our recent success is driven more by individual entrepreneurial vision and passion. What we lack is a community partnership of business and government that seizes on visionary opportunities like the rerouting of I-20/59 through downtown, below, and makes it happen.
Or as David Sher blows against the coarse wind of naysayers by lobbying for some sort of regional government in his blog, ComebackTown.
Roald Hazelhoff, director of the Southern Environmental Center at Birmingham-Southern College, started the Darter Festival at Railroad Park and wanted to reposition us as the Gateway to Nature, dropping the old dated Magic City moniker. [Editor’s note: Hugh Hunter served on the center’s board of trustees since 1995.]
The Southern Environmental Center is a co-manager of
the Turkey Creek Nature Preserve.
And my friend and Mr. Birmingham Tom Cosby, below, is championing one of my favorite big ideas: extending the Appalachian Trail to Alabama. He has shown me where the trailhead will start at Flagg Mountain, about 20 miles south of Sylacauga.
So, let’s think big, Birmingham!
• • •
Hugh Hunter is owner of Hunter Photography and partner in Hunter Films, both based in Birmingham.
• • •
The full version of this photo essay and many more are available in the free ebook, “The Future of Birmingham.”
All you need to do is fill out this simple form. We’ll email you a link to download the book. (And, at no extra charge, we’ll add you to the mailing list for the free Y’all Connect newsletter.)
• • •
Read more essays in our special 10th anniversary series, The Future of Birmingham.
• • •
Essays from other contributors are available in the free ebook, “The Future of Birmingham.”
All you need to do is fill out this simple form. We’ll email you a link to download the book. (And, at no extra charge, we’ll add you to the mailing list for the free Y’all Connect newsletter.)
• • •
Read more essays in our special 10th anniversary series, The Future of Birmingham.
Photo: Shannon (CC)
The Sloss Music and Arts Festival launched earlier this year.
While new events can enrich city life, many residents continue
to lack basic services and help.
•
Get the full version of this essay in our free ebook.
Details at the end.
•
By Caperton Gillett
I’d never really considered the future of Birmingham. In my inherent cynicism, I figured that the future of this city would be more or less identical to the present.
It’s not something one likes to discover about oneself.
And I recognize that it’s neither entirely accurate nor entirely founded. Things in Birmingham are changing dramatically for the better. It’s a place to be on purpose. We’re on lists that start with “The Top 10 Places” — and good ones, not like “The Top 10 Places for Competitive Tulip Growers.” A metropolitan area once known for largely for racial tension, record-breaking bankruptcy and obesity (we’re Top 3!) is now a city worth bragging about, and more so seemingly every day.
Birmingham has a legitimate downtown loft district, complete with actual entertainment, culture and nightlife in an area that used to roll up its sidewalks at 9 p.m. Downtown and surrounding areas are filling up with homegrown stores and restaurants, keeping money in the local economy and just giving us a reason to get out and meet our neighbors.
We have parks — nice ones. We have a baseball stadium — a really nice one. The hops? Free as a bird. Landmarks and cultural touchpoints are being restored with an eye to preserving our history instead of ignoring it; our sidewalks are literally teeming with filmmakers and walkers and crawlers of art. We have festivals the way rural towns have agricultural fairs (are we going to start crowning a Miss Cask and Drum? please?), and they’re well attended.
Just as notable as the positive changes are the changes that haven’t been happening. And the people to whom they haven’t been happening.
The ZIP code encompassing the loft district, many civic buildings and much of the new culture and entertainment happens to be the second-poorest ZIP code in Alabama, the seventh-poorest state in the country. The poverty rate surrounding all of those gorgeous luxury lofts is 50 percent; citywide, the rate is just above 30 percent.
Increasingly trendy neighborhoods like Avondale are pushing out crime and unpleasantness to make way for art, quirky bars, home renovation and rising property values. But caught in the tide are some longtime residents who can’t afford to hang with increasingly affluent newcomers. Often, infrastructural issues long unaddressed by the city finally see action once the neighborhood is nice enough to be deemed worth fixing.
The growth and revitalization of these de-vitalized parts of the city isn’t a bad trend. Residents have organized, worked hard and worked consciously to make their neighborhood a better place by reviving dilapidated houses, bringing in local businesses and supporting schools. Avondale is unquestionably a cleaner, safer and livelier neighborhood, thanks to its proponents.
But many neighbors who benefit from it aren’t the ones who made their homes there before it got fancy. “Improving neighborhoods” and “improving life for current residents” aren’t always simultaneous goals.
Issues like poverty must be addressed head-on. If an area is improved by pushing out the impoverished, they aren’t any better off. They’re just … elsewhere.
• • •
Caperton Gillett is a senior copywriter at o2 ideas and a freelance writer.
• • •
The full version of this essay and many more are available in the free ebook, “The Future of Birmingham.”
All you need to do is fill out this simple form. We’ll email you a link to download the book. (And, at no extra charge, we’ll add you to the mailing list for the free Y’all Connect newsletter.)
• • •
Read more essays in our special 10th anniversary series, The Future of Birmingham.
Video: Ike Pigott reflects on the food movement in Birmingham.
•
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Details at the end.
•
By Ike Pigott
[Note: video transcript]
The future of Birmingham is food.
So what do I mean by that?
We’re not going to become this agrarian paradise. We’re not going to have urban farming everywhere.
But food is going to be the thing that changes Birmingham and alters its future for the better.
If you think about it, that simple picture I took at the food truck has represented something, for me anyway. It’s one of the areas of the city where you are inclined to see about a third laborers, a third hipsters and a third businesspeople. It’s one of the most egalitarian areas that you’re going to come across in the city.
Every little food truck is like its own little Railroad Park in Birmingham, having just the right mix of people, having a good diverse group of people and having a group of people getting along and communing around something.
It’s been that way for a long time.
And I’m going to take that from the present, and I’m going to go back to the past.
•
More on the Taqueria Guzman Taco Truck.
•
The images of segregation in Birmingham, the images of segregation in the city, often very violent. But the ones that stand out are the ones that seem so innocuous: the restrooms, the lunch counters, where people could be eating together but were prevented from doing so. And that in and of itself was part of the abomination.
But then you look to the future, and I see a future for downtown, I see a downtown that has been trying to grow and trying to build its culture and try to bring people for a very long time.
And what’s the piece that is the linchpin that is really going to spur a renaissance in downtown Birmingham in bringing people in? It’s the Publix — it’s the grocery store, it’s food. You put the kind of food in there that brings people together, and people can’t help but be together.
So there’s your answer: It’s food.
• • •
Ike Pigott is a veteran communicator based in Birmingham who got out of television news and back into life. Now working for Alabama Power, he specializes in corporate communications, but has interests that are all over the place.
• • •
Essays from other contributors are available in the free ebook, “The Future of Birmingham.”
All you need to do is fill out this simple form. We’ll email you a link to download the book. (And, at no extra charge, we’ll add you to the mailing list for the free Y’all Connect newsletter.)
• • •
Read more essays in our special 10th anniversary series, The Future of Birmingham.
Photo: Ike Pigott (reprinted with permission)
The First Avenue North gas station lot is a gathering place for
fans of the Taqueria Guzman taco truck. Food can be the basis
of a coming together in a city long divided.
Photo: Ralph Daily (CC)
Local media outlets have seen big changes in their news
operations. But not all the changes have been for the better
for the audience.
•
Get the full version of this essay in our free ebook.
Details at the end.
•
Close to a year ago, I gave a talk at a conference here in town about the state of the media. It’s one of the most depressing presentations I’ve ever given.
The talk has become badly out of date: The news has gotten much worse.
Birmingham, once a small haven for media, is a smoking crater. With each passing year, the crater grows a little wider, a little deeper.
That’s not to slight some of the fine folks left to hold down the fort. The decisions that got us to this ruination were made largely out of state, without regard to subscribers, advertisers, journalists or citizens.
I find that painful to accept as a media consumer, producer, observer and fan.
Local media outlets, whether broadcast, print or Web, have embraced a common playbook: Get eyeballs any way possible. No headline too outrageous, no teaser too wild, no rumor too preposterous. Let us click and bait, for tomorrow we die.
The tyranny of the popular dictates coverage, meaning complete annihilation of watchdog reports on government at every level. Tin-pot mayors from Tarrant to Fairfield, rejoice: Absolutely no one is guarding the henhouse, and better than that, no one cares.
I live in Birmingham proper, but even the city hall coverage here is superficial. While I may know what happens in council meetings, I lack the proper context to understand how it affects me, my wallet, my neighborhood and our future.
We’ve been on this path in Birmingham for a decade or so.
Ten years ago today, on Sept. 23, 2005, my newspaper closed for good. The Birmingham Post-Herald’s death provided a preview of the mass layoffs to come for hundreds upon hundreds of reporters, editors, photographers, copy editors, producers, designers and more.
We see a steady stream of new faces as replacements, cheap disposable labor with no ties to the community. We’re told they’re good at generating content and engaging the audience.
What have we lost in this clumsy transition to all-out digital one-upmanship? That’s the most difficult category to measure, the absence of reportage.
We are completely on our own. And it’s only going to get worse.
I couldn’t do any better. Invest a million dollars into a fantasy news operation I lead, and it would either barely break even or steadily bleed money, even with talented reporters on the cheap. It would gain a small but loyal audience with above-average income, featuring stories that win accolades and awards.
And sooner rather than later, it would fold.
The future of Birmingham is year-round coverage of Alabama and Auburn football, with breaks for viral memes and copy-paste media releases. It’s more airtime for newscasts with lucrative commercials. It’s Sunday-only print editions with 6-day-old news.
It’s the manufacture of outrage and delight to provide dwindling profits for outsider owners, at the expense of an informed citizenry and service as fearless guardians against corrupt government and business.
No one is coming to save us — not newspaper publishers, not partisan bloggers, not seasoned journalists, not Facebook gossipmongers — from our crater of ignorance.
• • •
The full version of this essay and many more are available in the free ebook, “The Future of Birmingham.”
All you need to do is fill out this simple form. We’ll email you a link to download the book. (And, at no extra charge, we’ll add you to the mailing list for the free Y’all Connect newsletter.)
• • •
Read more essays in our special 10th anniversary series, The Future of Birmingham.
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