New stadium will help neighborhoods, officials say

Local, county and state officials who spoke at the December groundbreaking for a new multi-use stadium at the BJCC said the facility should have a big impact on the Magic City.

“We’ll be transforming the way we approach tourism and entertainment with this state-of-the-art facility,” Birmingham Mayor Randall Woodfin said. 

The 55,000-seat, $174 million stadium, the new home for UAB Blazers football, will “be the finest facility of its kind in the state,” said UAB President Ray Watts.

But the stadium and other BJCC improvements will also generate tax revenue for the city’s neighborhood revitalization fund and benefit all 99 of Birmingham’s neighborhoods, including those near the project, according to Woodfin.

The stadium and other BJCC improvements are “just the beginning for this part of Birmingham, said Alabama State Sen. Jabo Waggoner.

“This 26th Street corridor is about to open up,” Waggoner said. “North Birmingham, in my opinion, will come back to life.”

Watts said he will “look forward to a transformation of the surrounding neighborhoods.” 

Site work is underway, and construction should begin in the spring or summer, according to the BJCC. 

Completion is expected by mid-2021 before The World Games and the UAB football season.