City Council delays decision on storage facility near Vulcan

The Birmingham City Council, after a public hearing on Tuesday, Aug. 27, voted to delay action on a request from a company seeking to build a self-storage facility at 1905 Richard Arrington Jr. Blvd. near Vulcan Park & Museum.

In July, the Council declared a 180-day moratorium on new storage facilities in the city, and Morningstar Storage today appealed the suspension of its application to build a mini-storage building and commercial office building on the previously vacant property.

The Council voted to continue the public hearing, which was chaired by Councilor Steven Hoyt, on Tuesday, Oct. 8, giving them time to research the issue further.

Prior to the vote, members heard from several Morningstar officials. They also heard from several area residents, all of whom opposed the project.

Morningstar Storage has been in the Birmingham market for five years and operates a facility on Montclair Road.

Dave Benson, the company’s CEO, told members that the new facility will have only 3-5 employees and generate only a small amount of sales tax. However, he said it will generate about $150,000 in property taxes for the city the first year.

Benson also argued that the facility would be a positive addition to the area. “We feel we are bringing investment to this corridor,” he said.

Morningstar has invested $2.6 million in the project so far and began work at the site prior to the imposition of the Council’s moratorium, according to Benson.

Among the speakers who opposed Morningstar’s appeal was Darlene Negrotto, Vulcan’s president and CEO. Vulcan is a “symbol of the city” that attracts about 150,000 visitors from around the world each year, she said.

“People equate Birmingham with what they see at the park,” Negrotto said.

She said “that corridor can become something beautiful,” and she cited the city’s plans to increase access for bicyclists and pedestrians on Arrington near Vulcan and open up a link between Five Points South and downtown Homewood.

As part of an ordinance passed in 2018, the corridor on Richard Arrington Jr. Blvd. over Red Mountain will be reduced to two lanes and include walkways and bike lanes.

In addition, there was not sufficient notice given of the development, according to Negrotto. “We heard nothing of this project until it began construction,” she said.

City Council President Valerie Abbott also mentioned the city’s plans to make that corridor more walkable and bikeable and said that Morningstar officials did not seem to be aware of those plans.

“The idea is to make this a vibrant area, and self-storage is not vibrant,” Abbott said. “There’s a better use for [the site] than self-storage.”

Abbott and Councilor Wardine Alexander both said that Morningstar should engage with the community. “We have to consider what the neighborhood has to say,” Alexander said.

Councilor Clinton Woods made the motion, seconded by Councilor William Parker, to continue the hearing for six weeks.

The purpose was to give members the chance to study the impact of the proposed development and how it would fit into the complete streets plan for the corridor.