November Real Estate Transactions & Development

November 14, 2019 10:40 AM

Miscellaneous

1. Orchestra Partners has joined forces with nationally renowned landscape architect Tom Leader to design a Parkside master plan to enhance walkability and connect the Parkside District to surrounding neighborhoods. This project includes historic preservation and mixed-use redevelopment plans for Powell Avenue Steam Plant and several historic warehouse buildings west of Railroad Park surrounding Good People Brewing. Orchestra Partners announced the plan Nov. 7 at the steam plant with representatives from the city of Birmingham, Alabama Power, Freshwater Land Trust, REV Birmingham, Urban Impact and other partners.

2. In a project for Dunn Real Estate, bDot Architecture created plans for the renovation of a building at 2205 Seventh Ave. S. as office space. Presently under construction, the project should be finished by the end of the year, according to bDot spokesperson Beth Roberson.

3. The residential units at the Denham Building, a mixed-use redevelopment at 1143 First Ave. S. in Parkside, were about 75% leased at press time, according to developer Hank Farmer of Atlanta-based Third & Urban. The project, which measures about 86,000 square feet, includes 59 loft apartments, as well as office and retail space. Construction was completed in August. Monday Night Brewing of Atlanta remains on track to open a 10,000-square-foot brew pub in the Denham Building’s outparcel building by spring 2020, Farmer said. He had no announcements regarding office tenants but said there were a “number of deals in the works.

Zoning Developers

4. Axel Rivera Barron and Susan Linebarry Barron of ABR properties LLC plan to build two four-story, 48-unit apartment buildings on parcels at 4211 Third Ave. S. and 4241 Third Ave. S. On Nov. 5, the Birmingham City Council approved a change in the zoning for the properties from B-2, general business district, to MU-M, mixed-use medium district. The Forest Park Neighborhood Association voted in August to recommend approval of the change, said Tim Gambrell, the city’s chief planner.

5. On Nov. 5, the Birmingham City Council authorized a contract in which the city will provide up to $865,000 to redevelop the Village Market located at 7737 Second Ave. S. in East Lake. An initial payment of $200,000 will come from the city’s “Healthy Food Fund” with the remainder coming from sales tax revenue over the next 10 years. This is the first allocation from the fund, which was established in May to offset the costs of opening and operating grocery stores in the city’s USDA-designated food deserts.

6. The Birmingham City Council voted Oct. 15 to deny an appeal from Morningstar Storage to complete its construction of a self-storage and commercial office building at 1905 Richard Arrington Jr. Blvd. near Vulcan Park and Museum. The appeal was necessary because the council voted in July to institute a temporary moratorium on the building of any new storage facilities in the city. Site work for the project has been underway since the summer. The vote to deny the appeal was 5-2, with two abstentions. Much of the opposition from some councilors and area residents stemmed from a concern that a storage facility is not the best use for a parcel that is so close to Vulcan — a major tourist attraction and a gateway to the city.

New Construction

7. Construction began in mid-September on a new central stairwell at the Birmingham Public Library downtown. It replaces an escalator that had been out of service since 2014. Construction should be completed in early 2020, according to a BPL news release. In the meantime, most of the library’s departments are housed temporarily in the nearby Linn-Henley Research Library.

8. Red Mountain Theatre Company will host a groundbreaking for its new $25 million arts campus on Wednesday, Dec. 11. The new facility will be located at 1600 Third Ave. S. adjacent to Regions Field. The main theatre will accommodate 360 attendees in cabaret seating or 450 people when configured as a proscenium-style venue. The 10,000-square-foot education center will house the 100-seat Discovery Theatre along with rehearsal and classroom spaces. The lobby will include a full-service bar and a donor lounge. LIVE Design Group are the architects. Brasfield & Gorrie is the general contractor. Harbert Realty Services will manage the project. Construction should be complete in summer 2021.

Construction Update

9. Site work continued at press time for the new $174 million multi-use stadium at the BJCC, to be called Protective Stadium. Russo Corporation, which handled the utility relocation, has completed the soil work, according to BJCC spokesperson Christina Frantom. CS Beatty Construction is carrying out the mass grading of the site. The BJCC released final renderings for the facility in September, after receiving approval from the city’s Design Review Committee. The bid for a general contractor was expected to go out in November, Frantom said.

10. Construction continues on Cortland Vesta, a luxury apartment development in the 2100 block of Highland Avenue. Harbert Realty Services is partnering on the project with Atlanta-based Cortland. The facility should be completed by 2020, according to a Cortland spokesperson. Pre-leasing began in August with move-ins beginning early 2020. Cortland will manage the completed residential community, which will include 318 residential units, a rooftop pool, retail and a parking deck.

11. UAB expects to complete construction of a new $60 million residence hall on 10th Avenue South between 16th and 17th Streets by June 2020, according to UAB Media Relations. The dorm will accommodate 720 undergraduates. At press time, construction was about 40% complete, and work was in progress on the concrete structure; exterior framing, sheathing and brick; and interior partitions, according to UAB Media Relations.

12. Construction is underway for the new $19.2 million UAB Technology Innovation Center, to be located at 17th Street South and Ninth Avenue South, according to UAB Media Relations. Set to open in early 2021, the center, measuring 40,000 square feet, will house campus internet connectivity and technology infrastructure.

13. A renovation of the old Snoozy’s Bookstore on campus to house the UAB Honors College should be complete by May 2020, according to UAB Media Relations. It will cost about $2.7 million to renovate the two-story, 11,000-square-foot building. The exterior grounds will be landscaped as a courtyard. At press time, construction was about 35% complete.

14. Construction began in late October on Town House Park, a new park with trees, tables and benches at the former location of Town House Hotel at the corner of 20th Street South and University Blvd., according to UAB Media Relations. Completion is expected in early 2020.

15. The renovation of the McCallum Basic Health Science Building at UAB is more than 85 percent complete, according to UAB Media Relations. Interior work is scheduled to be complete in March 2020, and the exterior renovation should be finished by April 2020.

Openings/Closings

16. The UAB School of Education opened its new outdoor walking trail Oct. 24, according to UAB Media Relations. The half-mile trail wraps around the School of Education, Sterne Library and Mini Park. The new trail can help students and employees relieve stress during busy days, according to UAB Employee Wellness Director Anna Threadcraft.

17. Mayor Randall Woodfin and other officials hosted a ribbon-cutting Oct. 18 for One Pratt Park near the Pratt City Library. The 6-acre park sits in an area hit by a powerful tornado on April 27, 2011. It features an activity building measuring 4,500 square feet, as well as open fields, picnic areas and a walking track. The park cost $8 million, most of which came from federal disaster recovery funds. The park was a collaboration between TLS Landscape Architecture of Berkley, Calif.; Macknally Land Design, a local landscape architecture and planning firm; and Design Initiative, a local architecture firm. Stone Construction of Birmingham was the contractor. The park has already received an American Society of Landscape Architects Merit Award for design.

18. Birmingham Winter Adventure in Railroad Park will return Nov. 22, according to a news release from the Railroad Park Foundation. An ice rink measuring 50 feet by 80 feet will be set up on the park’s 17th Street Plaza. New this year is a 100-foot-long ice slide in the park’s amphitheater. The rink and slide will be open seven days a week through Jan. 5 except for Thanksgiving Day and Christmas Day. For tickets and information, go to railroadpark.org.

19. The new Birmingham Central Market, at 1600 Morris Avenue adjacent to the MAX Central Station, opened for the first time Oct. 30. The market, which will feature fresh produce, fruit, eggs and honey, will operate Monday through Friday, 12:30-5:30 p.m. The market is a collaboration between the city of Birmingham and the Birmingham-Jefferson County Transit Authority.

20. Cantley & Company, known for custom cabinetry and kitchen designs, has relocated in Pepper Place, according to a news release from Sloss Real Estate. The company’s showroom, with a working test kitchen, is in the Design Supply home goods store at 2817 Second Ave. S.

21. Homewood restaurant Real & Rosemary is opening a second location at The Summit in the space formerly occupied by Zöe’s. Owner Jennifer Mims told Iron City Ink’s sister publication, 280 Living, that she planned to open in November. “The Summit is a great location where we can serve a different market, and we’re excited to be a part of 280 and the Cahaba Heights area,” Mims said. Mims expects to hire 20-25 employees at The Summit.

Coming Soon

22. Design and screen printing shop Yellowhammer Creative is opening a larger retail location in Pepper Place. At press time, a grand opening was scheduled for Nov. 15, according to a spokesperson for Sloss Real Estate. The shop will include expanded apparel offerings, collegiate designs, prints and locally sourced dry goods. The store is located in the Pepper Place Studios Building.

23. Jeni’s Splendid Ice Creams is opening a retail scoop shop at Pepper Place in Lakeview in spring 2020, according to a news release from Sloss Real Estate. It will be the store’s first location in Alabama. The storefront will be 640 square feet with outdoor seating on a large patio. The store was founded in 2002 by ice-cream maker Jeni Britton Bauer, winner of a James Beard Award.