Some urban planning and development stuff to chew on

OK, who thought it was A'OK for the municipality of Hoover to propose an ideal to convert the former 3-level Macy's at Riverchase Galleria mall into a convention/events center with stage theater?  The project is now on hold, but they wanted to turn the 285,000 square foot space into a public space.

Here's the pros and cons of the project according to Hoover municipal officials:

• -- The Galleria is one of the largest malls in the state/region and has helped enhance recognition of Hoover.
• -- There is a relatively large number of restaurants and retail businesses surrounding the mall and throughout the city.
• -- There's a perception of safety and convenience with parking and accessibility.
• -- Relative to its size, Hoover offers a large number of hotels.
Weaknesses included:
• -- Hoover has a limited perception as a convention destination, and the city is viewed by some non-locals as a "suburb with a big mall."
• -- The city lacks a traditional downtown and/or central business district with a density of visitor amenities and entertainment options.
• -- There are a number of potentially competitive event venues in the greater local marketplace.
• -- The city is inland, versus on a coast.

Last time I remember, Hoover is the middle of the socially and fiscally conservative territory, where "socialist" initiatives like that to a minimum or non-existent (remember how you guys didn't even want a measly bus line in your community?).  Now they want to overstep on partial owners General Growth Properties and Jim Wilson to turn their largest vacant space in their shopping center into a "public entity"?  Now the GGP and Jim Wilson  is very actively pursuing finding a replacement for the space that was to become a Nordstrom but thanks to GGP screw up it failed.  LOL  Hoover, you guys kill me because your community has low-range to mid-range hotels aside from the Wynfrey Hotel at Riverchase itself, and that is 1 upper-tier hotel.  Then there is the lack of downtown or central portion of the community to designate as a "downtown".  You are a suburb of Birmingham and that is all Hoover will ever be because its development patterns are incompatible with "hub status" of the region.

My alma mater, the University of Alabama at Birmingham aka UAB, has finally made up their minds on the design and scope of what they are going to place on the corner of 10th Avenue South & 13th Street South.  It's going to become a visual arts center with classrooms, essentially replacing the nearly 40-year-old George Wallace Humanities Building on the 13th Street of the UAB campus.  At the moment, the corner is a parking lot for the engineering buildings and Alys Stephens Center for the Performing Arts, home of the Alabama Symphony Orchestra.  Also UAB, has committed to finally placing an on-campus stadium for the UAB Blazers football and soccer teams at 6th Avenue South and 12th Street South.  It will seat 25,000 to 30,000 and will have a large plaza adjacent to the stadium for tailgating.  The stadium is a part of a measure will be presented to the University of Alabama system trustees for approval soon.  The new master plan  also calls for new access roads lining Interstate 65, a new science complex on University Boulevard and 18th Street South, and the eventual elimination of much of the street parking on campus, which would be replaced by parking decks.  Score 2 for UAB and its decision to make some major moves and attempting to produce more dense and coherent development flowing with the urban core of Birmingham this past week.

Oh no! It's going to happen again!

Well, the long and drawn out narrative of Jefferson County government and its plethora of problems have a new chapter.  This time it could be a repeat of last year's shortfall during a fiscal year, but the results will be more permanent.  Bettye Fine Collins told the Birmingham News that she has already asked county officials to prepare 2 sets of FY 2011 budgets.  The current occupational tax that was passed into law last year during the special session is being threatened by yet another lawsuit by the same duo of greedy lawyers that brought down the original occupational tax that had been in placed since 1987.

Meanwhile, I'm more puzzled at the hysteria that a number of individuals are stirring about the county-run indigent Cooper Green Mercy Hospital.  These people are acting as if the existence of the hospital and county-ran nursing home is the pillage of the county government's existence.  Now personally, the county nursing home should be closed because most patients at other private nursing homes are on Medicare.  On the other hand, the county-run hospital isn't any different than the indigent care facilities like Grady Memorial Hospital in Atlanta, Jackson Memorial Hospital in Miami, or the Regional Medical Center of Memphis.  The fact that other non-profit facilities like UAB Hospital in Birmingham are essentially publicly funded like Cooper Green, but they will basically bankrupt uninsured individuals.  Also Cooper Green at least offers a reasonable plan for the uninsured than UAB which is operates as a for-profit hospital on taxpayers expense.

UAB extends benefits to same-sex partners

The University of Alabama at Birmingham (UAB) is the first state university to offer health insurance to domestic partners of faulty and employees.  The new ordinance will go into affect as of January 1, 2010, but faculty and staff were able to enroll same-sex partners and their children in medical, dental and vision plans for the first time earlier this month, for coverage beginning in the new year.

This is amazing, yet not surprising considering it's the only university in the state that has a "non-discrimination policy" including sexual orientation and gender identity in the state dubbed "Safe Zone".  Although the officials at UAB denied the independent film by Birmingham filmmaker and UAB student's documentary "One Closed Door After Another" about the lack of benefits for employees this summer at the Birmingham SHOUT LGBT film festival. 

Here's an except of the film:



Well, Birmingham is trying to keep up with UAB allowing this, and it will help retain more top talent as a research university.