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Sarah Finnegan
Chief Development Officer of Retail Specialists Rodney Barstein speaks at the ribbon cutting for The Waites in downtown Birmingham on June 28, 2017. The new space will feature three floors of apartments with the bottom floor dedicated to retail.
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Sarah Finnegan
Chief Development Officer of Retail Specialists Reynolds Barstein speaks at the ribbon cutting for The Waites in downtown Birmingham on June 28, 2017. The new space will feature three floors of apartments with the bottom floor dedicated to retail.
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Sarah Finnegan
Members of the Birmingham community cut the ribbon to signify the official opening of The Waites in downtown Birmingham on June 28, 2017. The new space will feature three floors of apartments with the bottom floor dedicated to retail.
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Sarah Finnegan
Members of the Birmingham community cut the ribbon to signify the official opening of The Waites in downtown Birmingham on June 28, 2017. The new space will feature three floors of apartments with the bottom floor dedicated to retail.
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Sarah Finnegan
Guests walk past local artwork in the lobby fo The Waites while on a tour following the ribbon cutting on June 28, 2017.
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Sarah Finnegan
Chief Development Officer of Retail Specialists Rodney Barstein speak with Birmingham Mayor William Bell during a tour of the newly opened Waites on June 28, 2017.
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Sarah Finnegan
Birmingham community members tour the newly opened Waites on June 28, 2017. The new space will feature three floors of apartments with the bottom floor dedicated to retail.
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Sarah Finnegan
Birmingham community members tour the newly opened Waites on June 28, 2017. The new space will feature three floors of apartments with the bottom floor dedicated to retail.
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Sarah Finnegan
Birmingham community members tour the newly opened Waites on June 28, 2017. The new space will feature three floors of apartments with the bottom floor dedicated to retail.
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Sarah Finnegan
Birmingham community members tour the newly opened Waites on June 28, 2017. The new space will feature three floors of apartments with the bottom floor dedicated to retail.
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Sarah Finnegan
The apartments in the newly opened Waites feature sophisticated, keyless entry systems as opposed to traditional keyholes or magnetic locks.
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Sarah Finnegan
Each apartment in the newly-opened Waites comes with smart thermostats for energy efficiency.
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Sarah Finnegan
The bottom floor of The Waites will feature multiple retail spaces while the above three floors will feature apartments.
The Waites, a $16.5 million retail and residential project under construction at Seventh Avenue South and Richard Arrington Boulevard, is officially open.
While residents starting moving in about a week ago, The Waites held its official ribbon cutting on Wednesday, June 28. During the ribbon cutting, Chief Development Officer for Retail Specialist Rodney Barstein said that one of the perks of The Waites is its convenience to UAB, which he said will serve a growing student and medical professional population.
They were also aware of the historical significance of the building, Barstein said, and aimed to retain original limestone in the new building. Mayor William Bell also spoke at the ribbon cutting, reminiscing on the time he spent at The Waites while at UAB.
“As a student at UAB during my undergrad days, this is one of the locations I would come to to get something to eat, and it brought back a lot of memories during the groundbreaking,” Bell said.
While it was sad to see the original building torn down, Bell said "as this building rose out of the demolition and the ashes, and then I saw the name of Waites going back on the building itself, it captured everything that I remembered about it, what it brings to this property for the Birmingham of today and the Birmingham of the future.”
The retail shops in The Waites are set to start opening in August, Barstein said, and he hopes that will being "a lot of vibrancy to the corner."
