Real Estate Update: March 2021
Miscellaneous
1. Owner Steve Gilmer moved What’s on Second, his antique and pop-culture collectibles shop, from the Loft District downtown to Five Points South in January, according to a post on the store’s Facebook page. His new storefront, at 1101 20th St. S., is housed in the 1920s-era Spanish Stores building.
2. UAB is planning to build a new Science and Engineering Complex costing $78.5 million. There will be 145,784 square feet of space for teaching, laboratories and offices, according to UAB Media Relations. The new complex will replace the current Education Building on 14th Street South between University Boulevard and 10th Avenue South. A notice to proceed was issued Feb. 1. Asbestos abatement and demolition of the existing Education Building will take place from February to May with new construction to start immediately following demolition. The project should be complete by the summer of 2023.
3. Birmingham developer Orchestra Partners will soon renovate several vintage warehouses west of Railroad Park in a mixed-use project called Urban Supply. Developers told Iron City Ink construction is set to begin in early 2021 and that they have been talking to prospective tenants. Orchestra Partners purchased buildings between 14th Street South and 12th Street South and between First Avenue South and Second Avenue South, alongside or west of Good People Brewing Co. The buildings will be turned into roughly 100,000 square feet of commercial space housing retailers, restaurants and fitness providers designed to serve the needs of UAB students and the growing number of people living in Parkside. There will also be open areas and study spots in an eco-minded space defined by distinctive architecture and native plantings.
4. Corporate Realty in Birmingham — under the name Northside Redevelopment L.L.C. — is planning to redevelop the old Carraway Hospital site in Norwood. Robert Simon, CEO and president of Corporate Realty, said in a statement Dec. 29 that demolition will begin in the spring. This announcement followed a vote by the Birmingham City Council to grant the developer up to $13.2 million in incentives. Corporate Realty plans residential, hotel, retail, office and entertainment uses at the 41.5-acre site at an estimated cost of $340 million.
5. Atlanta developer Tellus Partners announced plans last fall to redevelop the 30-story AT&T City Center at 600 19th St. N. downtown as a mixed-use facility, according to media reports. Also known as the South Central Bell Building, the vintage structure was named to the National Register of Historic Places in December, according to the Alabama Historical Commission. It was built in 1971. The developers purchased the building in 2018.
6. Ironvest Partners, a Birmingham real estate firm, is turning the former Hibbett building at 1318 First Ave. N. into an office development called Ballast at The Switch, according to a news release from the company. The Switch is the name that was adopted in 2020 for the city’s innovation district. The office development is located across 14th Street North from Innovation Depot. Ballast’s floor plan includes spaces ranging from 1,000 to 20,000 square feet. Each private suite will be built to suit and will include access to four common areas, two indoor and two outdoor. The outdoor amenities include a roof and a private courtyard.
7. CRST Flatbed Solutions announced recently it will open a divisional headquarters at Daniel Payne Industrial Park in Birmingham. The facility — costing $5.14 million and measuring more than 23,000 square feet — will allow CRST to combine its corporate office in Birmingham and its maintenance operations in St. Clair County. It will house 42 employees with room for 10 more new hires. “Birmingham’s business-friendly environment made the decision to stay in the city an easy one,” CRST President and CEO Hugh Ekberg said in a Jan. 20 BBA news release. The facility will house training, education and orientation programs, provide parking and overnight facilities for CRST drivers and offer maintenance facilities for drivers and contractors. The Birmingham Industrial Development Board approved a 10-year tax abatement for the company on sales and use tax and property tax, according to the news release. CRST has several divisions, and Birmingham will be home to the flatbed division.
8. Automotive supplier Valeo North America will invest $5 million and bring 70 jobs to a new facility on Perimeter Way in Bessemer, according to a news release in January from the Birmingham Business Alliance. Valeo will occupy the existing facility in early 2021 and seek to be at full production by the second quarter of the year. The facility is another example of the Birmingham area’s growing presence in the automotive industry, the release states.
9. Innovation Depot is losing one growing company — BioGX, a molecular diagnostics company — but hopes to attract others in its place. BioGX has purchased a building on Valleydale Road in Shelby County that will house its corporate headquarters and expanded research and development and manufacturing capabilities, according to a news release from the Birmingham Business Alliance. The company will move to the new facility in phases in 2021. BioGX’s exit opens up ample wet lab space at Innovation Depot, said Drew Honeycutt, the incubator’s CEO. That lab space “will hopefully provide opportunities for more companies to follow in BioGX’s footsteps,” he said in the release.
Construction Update
10. Work is underway on a new build-to-suit warehouse for Ferguson Enterprises — a distributor of residential and commercial plumbing supplies — in Avondale Commerce Park at 101 39th St. N., said a spokesperson for Cushman & Wakefield/EGS Commercial Real Estate Inc. Cushman & Wakefield announced in November that it had entered into a long-term lease agreement with Ferguson and would develop the facility, which will measure about 67,000 square feet. Construction should take about 12 months.
11. Construction is underway on Phase 3 of the 20 Midtown mixed-use development that takes up an entire block between Second Avenue South and Third Avenue South and 20th Street South and Richard Arrington Jr. Blvd. downtown. The project will include parking, more than 300 residential units and about 50,000 square feet of retail space, according to media reports. The first two phases of the development at the intersection of 20th Street and Third Avenue South include a Publix, a Starbucks and a Chipotle Mexican Grill. The developers are Dick Schmalz of RGS Properties and Scott Bryant of Scott M. Bryant & Co. The Birmingham City Council approved an amended incentives agreement on Dec. 2 for the developers of 20 Midtown. The agreement includes roughly $11.7 million in incentives through 2037.
12. Orchestra Partners, a Birmingham development firm, is nearing completion of construction for Mercantile on Morris, its newest project downtown. At press time, the developers expected to finish work on the first residential units in February and the pedestrian plaza with retail and public areas in the spring. Located at 2212 Morris Ave., the project will feature access from both First Avenue North and Morris Avenue, and the pedestrian plaza with storefronts will connect the two streets. The company also announced in January that Bridge + Root, a fashion shop for men, will be the first retailer to open in the mixed-use development.
13. Work is underway on a project in Avondale from The Dobbins Group, a Birmingham real estate investment firm. The firm is investing $16.5 million in a 96-unit multifamily residential project at 4211 and 4241 Third Ave. S. The project will consist of two buildings containing 48 units each and should be completed by fall 2021. At press time, a spokesperson for the developer told Iron City Ink that site work and major utility tie-ins were complete; the slab is complete on one site and framing has begun; and the other site was to be poured in February with framing to start shortly thereafter.
14. Work continues on an 18-month expansion and renovation project at Legacy Arena. The facility was closed for construction beginning April 2. Expected completion is set for late 2021, according to a BJCC spokesperson. At press time, work continued on the electrical systems, drywall, insulation and plumbing. New stairways and escalators were in progress. Painting had begun on the exterior and grading and concrete work had begun in the loading dock and bus parking area.
15. Construction is underway at Protective Stadium, an open-air facility at the BJCC. The following work was complete or underway at press time, according to a BJCC spokesperson: The wall frame for the press box and suite tower has been installed; the grandstand structure is being installed; interior work is taking place on the concourses and concession areas; stairs, railing and metal bench seating are being installed; and stairs at the northern entrance have been poured. The facility should be finished in time for UAB football in fall 2021.
16. The new $19.2 million UAB Technology Innovation Center is under construction at 17th Street South and Ninth Avenue South. The center, measuring 40,000 square feet, will house campus internet connectivity and technology infrastructure. At press time, construction was 98% complete, with furniture installation, interior finishes and final inspections and certifications underway, according to UAB Media Relations. The project should be complete in March.
17. Construction of the new $60 million Residence Hall 2020 at UAB on 10th Avenue South between 16th and 17th streets was about 98% complete at press time, according to UAB Media Relations. The dorm will accommodate 720 undergraduates.
18. Work continues on a new $25 million arts campus for Red Mountain Theatre Company. The campus is located at 1600 Third Ave. S. adjacent to Regions Field. LIVE Design Group are the architects. Brasfield & Gorrie is the general contractor. At press time, the RMTC was to begin taking occupancy of portions of the facility, including the administrative offices, by the end of February, according to a spokesperson.
19. In the fall, UAB completed the interior renovation of the laboratories on the eighth and ninth floors in the McCallum Basic Science Building at 1918 University Blvd., as well as the installation of metal panels on the exterior of the eighth and ninth floors. Installation of metal panels on the exterior of floors two through seven is underway and is currently 75% complete, according to UAB Media Relations. Completion is scheduled for September.
Coming Soon
20. Chopt Creative Salad Co. recently announced on its Facebook page that the chain will open its first Alabama location at The Summit in Birmingham. The eatery, located at 331 Summit Blvd., was scheduled to open Feb. 23. The chain serves salads, wraps and warm grain bowls.