Mayor-elect Woodfin taps leaders for his transition team

Birmingham Mayor-elect Randall Woodfin announced on Tuesday, Oct. 10, that Gen. Charles Krulak and retired Alabama Power vice president Bobbie Knight will co-chair the transition process for his new administration, according to a news release from the transition team.

“As we transition to a new administration and a different way of doing business, it is imperative that experienced, successful, smart, public servants help lead that process,” Woodfin said. “Charles Krulak and Bobbie Knight love this city and its people, and they have the vision to help us reach our greatest potential.”

Krulak most recently served as president of Birmingham-Southern College after a 36-year career in the U.S. Marine Corps. General Krulak also served as Commandant of the Marine Corps and earned two purple hearts, three bronze stars and a silver star.

“Birmingham has so much potential, and it is our job to take advantage of this opportunity to help the city reach that potential. There are structural problems that have held us back, and those must be addressed,” Krulak said.

Before retiring from Alabama Power in 2016, Knight worked often with neighborhood and community leaders, as well as city, county, state and federal officials, on various issues facing the city.

“Like so many other people, I love Birmingham. We have made great strides in recent years on many fronts, and I believe we are on the cusp of becoming a truly great American city. But we must first address very real issues that face all of our citizens, from neighborhood revitalization to education to reducing red tape so that Birmingham is truly open for business investment,” Knight said.

Woodfin announced that Ed Fields, a long-time Birmingham resident and business person, will serve as transition coordinator.

The mayor-elect also said that he wants citizen involvement in the transition and in helping to address some of his new administration’s key priorities.

"We will be forming citizen-led committees to address our strategic objectives,” Woodfin said. “We encourage anyone who would like to be involved [to] reach out to us.”

Woodfin’s priorities include neighborhood revitalization, crime reduction, increasing support for education, making the city’s bureaucracy more responsive to the needs of businesses and increasing transparency at City Hall.

Any citizen interested in working in the transition can email transition@randallwoodfin.com.