Birmingham mayoral town hall: from left,
Emory Anthony, William Bell and Scott Douglas.

Five candidates for mayor of Birmingham came to Tuesday’s town hall. The event, sponsored by progressive young professional group Catalyst, took place at WorkPlay before hundreds of attendees.

Topics ranged from the budget to the arts to local food, with questions from audience members and the moderator.

The participants:

• Emory Anthony;
• William Bell;
• Scott Douglas;
• Steven Hoyt;
• Carole Smitherman.

(Organizers invited Patrick Cooper, who did not attend citing previous commitments. At the beginning of the event, T.C. Cannon asked to participate but was denied.)

From left, Steven Hoyt, Carole Smitherman
and moderator Natalie Davis.

Included below are audio clips of the candidates’ responses.

1. Candidate introductions
Order: Anthony, Bell, Douglas, Hoyt, Smitherman.
[15 min.]

[audio:http://www.archive.org/download/BirminghamMayoralTownHall12-01-09/BirminghamMayoralTownHall2009-1.mp3]

Moderator questions

2. Fixing the city’s financial mess
Order: Bell, Douglas, Hoyt, Smitherman, Anthony.
[9 min.]

[audio:http://www.archive.org/download/BirminghamMayoralTownHall12-01-09/BirminghamMayoralTownHall2009-2.mp3]

3. Where to cut city budget
Order: Douglas, Hoyt, Smitherman, Anthony, Bell.
[4 min.]

[audio:http://www.archive.org/download/BirminghamMayoralTownHall12-01-09/BirminghamMayoralTownHall2009-3.mp3]

4. What do you want to be your biggest accomplishment in 2 years as mayor?
Order: Hoyt, Smitherman, Anthony, Bell, Douglas.
[5 min.]

[audio:http://www.archive.org/download/BirminghamMayoralTownHall12-01-09/BirminghamMayoralTownHall2009-4.mp3]

Audience questions

5. How can the mayor facilitate partnerships among families, schools and communities?
Order: Smitherman, Hoyt, Douglas, Bell, Anthony.
[7 min.]

[audio:http://www.archive.org/download/BirminghamMayoralTownHall12-01-09/BirminghamMayoralTownHall2009-5.mp3]

6. Air pollution
Order: Hoyt, Douglas, Bell, Anthony, Smitherman.
[7 min.]

[audio:http://www.archive.org/download/BirminghamMayoralTownHall12-01-09/BirminghamMayoralTownHall2009-6.mp3]

7. Supporting local food initiatives / community gardens
Order: Douglas, Bell, Anthony, Smitherman, Hoyt.
[6 min.]

[audio:http://www.archive.org/download/BirminghamMayoralTownHall12-01-09/BirminghamMayoralTownHall2009-7.mp3]

8. Arts funding
Order: Bell, Anthony, Smitherman, Hoyt, Douglas.
[5 min.]

[audio:http://www.archive.org/download/BirminghamMayoralTownHall12-01-09/BirminghamMayoralTownHall2009-8.mp3]

9. Making it a “Magic City” / attracting young people
Order: Anthony, Bell, Douglas, Hoyt, Smitherman.
[6 min.]

[audio:http://www.archive.org/download/BirminghamMayoralTownHall12-01-09/BirminghamMayoralTownHall2009-9.mp3]

10. If you don’t win, how will you make Birmingham better during the next 2 years?
Order: Bell, Douglas, Hoyt, Smitherman, Anthony.
[6 min.]

[audio:http://www.archive.org/download/BirminghamMayoralTownHall12-01-09/BirminghamMayoralTownHall2009-10.mp3]

11. Closing statements
Order: Douglas, Hoyt, Smitherman, Anthony, Bell.
[9 min.]

[audio:http://www.archive.org/download/BirminghamMayoralTownHall12-01-09/BirminghamMayoralTownHall2009-11.mp3]

Also: a town hall report from the Birmingham News.

The election takes place Dec. 8.

• • •

More Vote 2009 coverage.

The Birmingham Leadership Awards were handed out earlier this evening at the Summit Club downtown. YPNow, formerly the YP Roundtable, sponsored the program.

Up and Coming: This award is designated to honor a young professional who either recently has moved to the Birmingham region or joined the young professional scene in 4 years or less. This individual has made an impact in Birmingham for their short time being involved in the YP community.

Winners:

• Marcus Carson
• Anna Curry
• Patricia Craft
• Justin Weintraub

Rookie of the Year:

• Michelle Amaral

Overachiever: This award is designated to honor a young professional who has been a part of the young professional scene for more than 5 years. He/She is a leader in the community and is constantly striving to improve the Birmingham region.

Winners:

• Michael Bell
• Ed Fields
• V.J. Graffeo

Organizational Award: Three separate awards will be given to a young professional civic organization or junior board that has demonstrated leadership and community impact. The categories have been divided by the number of members each civic organization has enrolled.

Winners:

• Small (1-15 members): Holy Family Cristo Rey Junior Board
• Medium (16-50 members): Glenwood, Autism and Behaviorial Health Center Junior Board
• Large (51-up members): Rotaract Club of Birmingham

Also: “Undue recognition: Why the Birmingham Leadership Awards promote divisiveness”

The Birmingham Business Alliance put on a mayoral forum Monday at the Alabama School of Fine Arts. Nine candidates answered questions submitted ahead of time and from the moderators on economic development.

About 150 people attended the nighttime event at the Alabama School of Fine Arts.

The participants:

• William Bell;
• T.C. Cannon;
• Steven Hoyt;
• Stephannie Sigler Huey;
• Edith Mayomi;
• Carole Smitherman;
• Jason Sumners;
• Jody Trautwein;
• Harry “Traveling Shoes” Turner.

Included below are audio clips of the candidates’ responses.

1. Candidate introductions (up to 60 seconds each)
Order: Cannon, Bell, Hoyt, Huey, Mayomi, Smitherman, Sumners, Trautwein, Turner.
[10 min.]

[audio:http://www.archive.org/download/MayoralForum11-30-09Part1/MayoralForum11-30-09Part1.mp3]

2. How to encourage entrepreneurship and small business development (up to 90 seconds each)
Order: Bell, Hoyt, Huey, Mayomi, Smitherman, Sumners, Trautwein, Turner, Cannon.
[12 min.]

[audio:http://www.archive.org/download/MayoralForum11-30-09Part2/MayoralForum11-30-09Part2.mp3]

3. How to attract and retain young professionals
Order: Hoyt, Huey, Mayomi, Smitherman, Sumners, Trautwein, Turner, Cannon, Bell.
[13 min.]

[audio:http://www.archive.org/download/BirminghamMayoralForum11-30-09Part3-9/MayoralForum11-30-09Part3.mp3]

4. Candidates’ financial experience
Order: Huey, Mayomi, Smitherman, Sumners, Trautwein, Turner, Cannon, Bell, Hoyt.
[12 min.]

[audio:http://www.archive.org/download/BirminghamMayoralForum11-30-09Part3-9/MayoralForum11-30-09Part4.mp3]

5. Move forward with domed stadium?
Order: Mayomi, Smitherman, Sumners, Trautwein, Turner, Cannon, Bell, Hoyt, Huey.
[13 min.]

[audio:http://www.archive.org/download/BirminghamMayoralForum11-30-09Part3-9/MayoralForum11-30-09Part5.mp3]

6. Airport expansion
Order: Smitherman, Sumners, Trautwein, Turner, Cannon, Bell, Hoyt, Huey, Mayomi.
[12 min.]

[audio:http://www.archive.org/download/BirminghamMayoralForum11-30-09Part3-9/MayoralForum11-30-09Part6.mp3]

7. Legion Field (up to 30 seconds each)
Order: Sumners, Trautwein, Turner, Cannon, Bell, Hoyt, Huey, Mayomi, Smitherman.
[3 min.]

[audio:http://www.archive.org/download/BirminghamMayoralForum11-30-09Part3-9/MayoralForum11-30-09Part7.mp3]

8. City takeover of Birmingham school system?
Order: Trautwein, Turner, Cannon, Bell, Hoyt, Huey, Mayomi, Smitherman, Sumners.
[5 min.]

[audio:http://www.archive.org/download/BirminghamMayoralForum11-30-09Part3-9/MayoralForum11-30-09Part8.mp3]

9. Support Gov. Riley’s plan for turning U.S. 280 into toll road?
Order: Turner, Cannon, Bell, Hoyt, Huey.
(Due to technical error, audio ends without 30-second responses made by Mayomi, Smitherman, Sumners and Trautwein.)
[2 min.]

[audio:http://www.archive.org/download/BirminghamMayoralForum11-30-09Part3-9/MayoralForum11-30-09Part9.mp3]

Also: Birmingham News summary of the forum.

Video: NBC 13 report on the forum

The election takes place Dec. 8.

• • •

More Vote 2009 coverage.

Birmingham mayoral candidate Jody Trautwein is an administrator and youth pastor for Point of Grace Ministries.

Video: NBC 13 interview

Video: CBS 42 interview

WBHM (90.3 FM) interview:
[audio:http://www.wbhm.org/songs/jodytrautwein.mp3]

More video interviews with all the candidates will be added daily. The election takes place Dec. 8.

• • •

More Vote 2009 coverage.

Meet Birmingham mayoral candidate Harry “Traveling Shoes” Turner: evangelist, roller-skating teacher and clown.

Video: CBS 42 interview

Video: NBC 13 interview

More video interviews with all the candidates will be added daily. The election takes place Dec. 8.

• • •

More Vote 2009 coverage.

A Picture of Health calendar: September 2010

Say, do you know when Arbor Day takes place next year?

With these two new charity calendars, you’ll never have to ask again.

• • •

• The Picture of Health 2010 calendar comes from photographer Angela Karen of Birmingham Bombshells. It features volunteers from the Birmingham area.

Part of the $20 price benefits the Norma Livingston Ovarian Cancer Foundation, a Birmingham-based organization. On the cover at left is Laura Crandall Brown, an ovarian cancer survivor and Karen’s friend.

It’s available at area bookstores and coffee shops, and online.

Update Dec. 15: Laura Crandall Brown died on Dec. 14 from ovarian cancer, reports Angela Karen.

On Dec. 16, the models will be at the Wine Loft downtown, 2200 First Ave. N., from 7 to 9 p.m. to sign calendars. Door prizes will be available. A portion of the proceeds go to the Norma Livingston Ovarian Cancer Foundation. Admission is $10, which includes a drink ticket, or $20, which includes a drink ticket and calendar.

The 12 models for A Picture of Health calendar

Video: Behind the scenes of the calendar shoot
for A Picture of Health

• • •

Hazel, left, and Brooke from the Brave Beauties 2010 calendar

• The Brave Beauties 2010 calendar features firefighters from Birmingham, Gardendale and Pelham. Firefighter Nina Taylor started the project in 2004.

All proceeds from the $23 calendar will go to Special Toys for Special Kids, a Birmingham charity that provides toys and educational devices for special needs children.

It’s available for order online.

Video: Brave Beauties’ calendar signing

Our pal Christie has been working overtime pulling together all of the Black Friday deals around Birmingham on Birmingham Bargain Mom.

Here are our favorites to help you save time, money and stress during the post-Thanksgiving madness …

• Dollar General Thanksgiving discounts: Why wait till Friday when you can save on Thursday? DVD players for $20, 5MB digital cameras for $25 and more.

• Freebies! Target has free reusable tote bags, Costco has free cookbooks, and Sam’s Club has free breakfast. Um, yes, yes and … pass.

• Payless ShoeSource coupon for buy one, get one half off: The coupon is available online, and a bonus coupon is available via special text message.

• Bass Pro Shops: Hooded sweatshirts for $10, Under Armour shirts for $39.99 and Garmin Nuvi 255 GPS navigator for $99.99  Open Thanksgiving, too.

Also: FatWallet has a comprehensive list of all Black Friday deals, which we’ve put into this Google Doc.

If you know of other Black Friday bargains, leave a comment.

Photo by lordcolus / CC BY 2.0

Two opportunities to help feed the growing numbers of needy families this holiday season …

Video: Donations down, clients up at Jimmie Hale Mission

You can donate cash or start a donation drive for the Jimmie Hale Mission.

Also, you can donate non-perishable foods for the City of Birmingham’s food drive at any Birmingham Public Library location, police precinct, fire station or City Hall through Monday.

Update: More ways to help at Food Revival.

The timeline of mayors …

• Oct. 28, 2009: After less than 2 years in office, Birmingham mayor Larry Langford loses office upon conviction in federal court. City council president Carole Smitherman automatically becomes interim mayor until …
• Today: The new council is sworn in. First task: Pick a council president. The council chooses Roderick Royal over Smitherman, which now makes him interim mayor for the next 2 weeks until …
• Dec. 8: Special election day to pick a new mayor. Since Royal isn’t running, the voters will choose the fourth mayor in 6 weeks.

Whew.

Also, Steven Hoyt was selected council president pro tempore over Johnathan Austin. Hoyt and Smitherman are both running for mayor.

• • •

More Vote 2009 coverage.

We’re not sure whether to file this under Vote 2009 or Crime Watch …

Jimmy Snow, candidate for mayor, was arrested for disorderly conduct Saturday night. Snow says he was campaigning at a Lakeview bar, denies any wrongdoing and claims the police used unnecessary force when arresting him.

Also, he also admits to drinking but says he wasn’t drunk. Snow added that someone was trying to sabotage his campaign.

OK, new rule if you’re running for mayor of Birmingham: If you’re going to get arrested, try to wait until after you’ve been in office awhile.

Snow’s background hasn’t been clear, that is, until the Birmingham News seemed to stumble upon his profession: a cook at Franklin’s Homewood Gourmet who makes the restaurant’s Pound Cake with Key Lime Cream from his mom’s recipe. He’s also owner of Green Door Health Foods in Mountain Brook.

Update: From the police arrest report:

The incident happened at 11:45 p.m. Saturday at Joe’s on Seventh. Snow entered without paying cover charge.

A police officer working off-duty at the club told Snow he would have to show identification and pay the cover. Snow then grabbed hold of the bar and began screaming, “I don’t have to pay. I’m running for mayor, and I don’t have to go anywhere.”

Officers had to wrestle Snow to the ground where he was handcuffed. Police took Snow first to UAB Hospital “because he stated he was crazy,” but he was evaluated and released. He was then taken to Cooper Green Mercy Hospital, where he refused treatment for minor scrapes on his arm.

Update Nov. 25: Two days before his arrest, the police were called to intercede in another incident involving Snow …

On Thursday night, at the Hot and Hot Fish Club on Southside, a restaurant em­ployee claimed an intoxicated Snow struck him. The victim, an acquaintance, said Snow twice tried to talk to him while he was on the phone, and said that when he didn’t respond, Snow used an open hand to hit the phone, causing “severe pain to the ear.”

(Favorite comment from the AL.com site: “If only there were an herb of some sort that could calm him down …”)

• • •

More Vote 2009 coverage.

A group calling itself the Birmingham Roundtable has scheduled a debate for Dec. 3, but has invited only five of the 14 candidates for mayor.

How did the Roundtable form?

A few weeks ago, a lively debate about the future of Birmingham politics broke out at downtown’s Surin West. The result? A group of young, working Alabamians decided to make their voices heard and organize a debate of the five leading candidates.

This informal group, led by Tracie A. Todd, included young African-American lawyers, grassroots organizers, bankers, teachers, politicians and business professionals. The group has coined itself the Birmingham Roundtable … dedicated to engaging young adults in the political and civic communities.

Birmingham Roundtable mayoral candidate debate

• When: 6 p.m. Dec. 3
• Where: Vulcan Conference Room, Highland Conference Center, 2012 Magnolia Ave. [map]
• Format: debate. Organizers invited Emory Anthony, William Bell, Patrick Cooper, Stephen Hoyt and Carole Smitherman; so far Anthony, Bell and Hoyt have accepted.
• For more information: See the Urbanham.com story or e-mail organizer Tracie A. Todd at tracietodd9@hotmail.com.

Other upcoming forums:

• Nov. 30: Birmingham Business Alliance candidate forum
• Dec. 1: Catalyst 2009 mayoral town hall

The election takes place Dec. 8.

• • •

More Vote 2009 coverage.

You know it’s going to be a weird holiday week when the first thing you see Monday morning is “Cooper Rap,” a pro-Patrick Cooper music vid. Birmingham comedy troupe Vacant Overload Manifesto produced the parody spot.

The group claims no association with the Cooper mayoral campaign, and vice versa.

Update Nov. 24: Vacant Manifesto contacted us with more information. The group — Michael, Adam and Michael — makes videos for fun and entertainment: “We certainly didn’t think the ‘Cooper Rap’ would generate such a response. We thought it was a very funny idea, but we sort of threw it together over the weekend, and didn’t realize what it would do.”

The group can be found on YouTube, Twitter (@VacantManifesto) and Facebook.

Video: “Cooper Rap” by the Vacant Overload

• • •

It gets even weirder when a sharp-eared listener remembered the source: “Ninja Rap,” a Vanilla Ice cut from the soundtrack to the 1991 sequel, “Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles II: The Secret of the Ooze.”

Video: “Ninja Rap” by Vanilla Ice

• • •

As a bonus, we include this little gem from Eric McGinty of Birmingham rock band the Exhibit(s). It’s actually a holdover from the 2007 campaign, a little ditty advocating our mutual friend Jim for mayor (who wasn’t even running).

But Eric updated it for 2009: Check out the ending, where you’ll see bios from … our series, Birmingham’s Biggest Crooks.

Video: “Vote for Jim”

If you spot any other wacky campaign videos for this season, let us know in the comments.

• • •

More Vote 2009 coverage.

Despite drop in major crimes, city jumps from eighth place in 2008

Birmingham may be seeing welcome relief when it comes to crime, but not enough to sway its ranking in the CQ Press’ annual city crime rankings released today. The city again made the Top 10, placing at No. 7.

In 2008, the city ranked eighth, and in 2007 and 2006, it placed sixth.

Last week, Birmingham reported a 12 percent drop in major crime in 2009, including a 25 percent drop in homicides.

The Washington-based publisher used crime data reported to the FBI in six areas: murder, rape, robbery, aggravated assault, burglary and motor vehicle theft. In previous years, CQ Press referred to the rankings as the “Most Dangerous Cities” list, but dropped the designation this year.

Other Alabama cities ranked:

95. Huntsville
136. Mobile
140. Tuscaloosa
152. Montgomery

Camden, N.J. topped that list.

In the list of 2009 Metropolitan Crime Rate Rankings, Birmingham-Hoover came in at No. 21. Also on that list from Alabama:

11. Columbus, GA-AL
20. Mobile
64. Tuscaloosa
101. Montgomery
123. Huntsville
141. Gadsden
159. Dothan

Pine Bluff, Ark., is No. 1 on the list.

• • •

Visit our Crime Watch page.

CEO keynote explains parallels and possibilities

Jay Grinney told attendees of the Birmingham Economic Summit Thursday that HealthSouth’s comeback can show the way for Jefferson County to solve its debt and leadership crisis. The HealthSouth chief executive officer was the keynote speaker during lunch at the Birmingham-Jefferson Convention Complex.

Included above are slides from his presentation, which show how badly the rehab company screwed up, and how nothing short of replacing all top officers and changing the culture kept the company from shutting down.

Grinney pointed out that during his travels across the country, Jefferson County was known far and wide for its convicted officials and massive sewer debt: “More people are aware of Jefferson County’s problems than they were of HealthSouth’s problems.”

He cited the Birmingham Business Alliance’s plan in the works to stimulate economic development, and the need for a combined county-city government.

The two-day summit concludes today.

What do you think? Can the county learn from HealthSouth? Should it work on cooperative or combined government?

Love holiday eating? If so, why not shop and eat locally for Thanksgiving, Christmas and any other upcoming holiday celebrations and feasts?

Our pal Amanda at Food Revival has a great list of farms and shops that sell organic or sustainably raised turkeys and vegetables. See her list, shop smartly and let us know about other places to shop in the comments.

Also, Birmingham Magazine has recipes to get you started, including Satsuma-Stuffed Locally Bred Turkey with Alabama Root Vegetables and Conecuh County Sausage and Collard Cheese Grits.

Enjoy your holidays!