Category Archives: regional

Transit's getting necessary

Most people (including myself) are married to their automobiles here in Birmingham. We are a city that loves their cars, even though a major reason for the growth of the city during its boom period was the development of communities along our extensive streetcar system.

If our mayor gets his way (and based on yesterday’s public meetings he may) you’ll soon be wondering if your love of your car is as important as your love for balancing that checkbook.

There are many that believe that no one ever rides the bus. Well, if you get in your car at 7:30 a.m. and you drive 30-45 minutes to work in traffic to come into the city center then that would be the case, because by that time most of the folks that use what’s currently available to them have already passed through our downtown or they’re waiting at the station on Morris Avenue to continue their trip. For those that wonder how I know this to be true – the first place that I lived in Birmingham was at the corner of 1st Avenue & 22nd Street North, a location that sees many of the buses that constitute the current MAX fleet.

I never saw a crowd on them at 7 or 8, but if I was attempting to work out on an elliptical right next to the window at 6 a.m., there would be plenty of full buses and people from all over the county trying to get from point A to point B passing by my window.

Many who currently view the buses as a problem are generally “viewing” it as a spectator and not as a participant. I’ve only used our current bus system three times – including my visits to the city since 1998. It does make more sense to drive, though as a result, we’re all looking in at the problem without necessarily understanding all of the nuances. A change in perspective, as mentioned yesterday, would possibly give us a better understanding of what it could mean to overhaul how transit is done in the city of Birmingham.

Yours truly decided to crunch some numbers on the conservative side of things to look at just how much savings we’d see if we gave up our cars for a transit filled life:

We’ll assume that gas is at $3.50 for regular for demonstration purposes and that our tank can hold 15 gallons. We’re also assuming one stop at a gas station per week. For the purposes of this exercise, we’ll consider a car fully covered with monthly charges being about $85. We’ll also assume that we’re only taking the car in four times a year for an oil change (which is a lot, but we’re not considering unexpected costs which add up to be much more than what the totals will show. We’re also not considering car payments – a fact of life for many of us.

As far a transit goes, we’ll assume that the new authority created to run our transit system uses a daily rate of $1.25 for rides that include transfers. As a result, we’ll also run the numbers on the current MAX monthly pass rate of $44:

Method of transportation
Total cost for one year to driver/passenger
 
Personal auto   $3,810  
Mass transit (pay per trip – weekdays only)   $1,300  
Mass transit (monthly pass)   $528  

The cost benefit savings alone will not be enough to entice riders to trust in their bus system and few families can ever completely give up their cars here in Birmingham. Even now while I do not drive nearly as much as I did before, I am still dependent on my car for nights and weekends.

An overhaul of the way routes are run will also need to be considered. We currently operate most of our buses on what could be considered a spoke system. This means that every rider that needs to make a transfer in downtown and they need to be on a bus way earlier than is necessary for the amount of land covered by our current system.

Perhaps running a system that is based on what is found in an Atlanta, Georgia or an Ottawa, Ontario (and there’s is a mainly bus-built system) is more likely to see the results that most think of when they envision mass transit. Our current downtown bus (soon to be intermodal) station would still remain a hub, though it would now be based on actually being a crossing point for the system and not the center of its spoke-like system. It would allow for buses to service more of the community and allow those that do not necessarily need to come downtown from traveling out of the way of their final destination. Based on the mayor’s recent comments, it would also be a point where the existing system could connect with the city’s system.

There are many that would comment about on-time reliability, consistency and overall trust in the infrastructure of a system before they use it. They’d also want something flashier since they may not see bus rapid transit or other things like that as “sexy enough” for Birmingham. If it gets them to think about carpooling or something else, then we’re still accomplishing the goal. It may also get us to talk to each other more, and that could be the best thing to come out of it.

André Natta is the publisher and managing editor of The Terminal. To submit letters in response to this commentary or to contact for general information, use any of the methods listed on our contact page.

A change in perspective is in order

I started out today writing an editorial about transit and how people’s perspectives are skewed based on how they’re looking at an issue – in particular, transit. After attending this morning’s city council meeting, I’m saving that one for tomorrow; now I want to explore the issue of perspective on a different scale.

I’m a resident of Birmingham’s Central City neighborhood – been one since my arrival in Birmingham a little over three years ago. This morning I can honestly say that I’d never seen those residents any happier. They’d brought an issue before the City Council (the Screening Room). About half-way through the public comments, Mayor Langford asked to speak. He said that he was willing to send a tactical force unit out and have it sit right in front of the business until a decision had been reached. After the council unanimously approved revoking their business license, the mayor said that he’d be willing to sign the order as soon as this afternoon. He also spoke to the group assembled in the chambers, but also geared his comments to those that would be watching the meeting as it was being rebroadcast. He asked people to take note of what had just happened – that people wanted to take back their city and that once the elected officials were notified, the issue could be addressed. People from outside would have loved to say that nothing was going to happen. Those 20+ residents that appeared in chambers this morning would have a different perspective this afternoon.

Langford loves to say that no one should be able to tell someone what they should not be able to accomplish (forgive me mayor as I did not take great notes during the session today, I was enjoying the WiFi access from council chambers). Nowhere is that more evident than with regards to the pending increase in taxes and business licenses. While I believe that we should make one more effort to work regionally, a conversation with one of my best friends reminded me of a philosophy that’s worked in the past.

There is a need to improve the perception of the city. Whether we like it or not, that change in perception is going to cost money. The state of Alabama is not known for its support of taxes, but guess what – because we play some of the lowest taxes in the country, it’s hard for us to compare ourselves to other cities since their tax base, in particular their property taxes, are in an entirely different league. We have expectations for our city that carry price tags that are quite exorbitant. It would be like wanting the amenities associated with a Ritz Carlton at a Motel 6 price. Many of our perceptions come from the driver’s or passenger seat of a car doing 60 MPH (OK, maybe a little faster) on our area’s highways. How often do you spend your time outside – truly outside? Away from a car, your home, a restaurant, etc.? I’m guessing it would probably be somewhere around 1 hour a day. Maybe if we spent our time outside and took a look at things from a different perspective, we’d see what could happen…

I’m not sure if the Chamber’s executive committee did the right or wrong thing with regards to wanting to see things happen. While potential increases would affect few of them, their motivation was pure frustration about the perception of the city from outsiders and visions of what their city could look like if all of the items identified in the mayor’s plan are implemented. They’ve wanted to see something happen for a long time. The need for change and progress is enough to take a chance – to do something.

People want to be proud of this city. The majority of folks are very proud of this city. The time may finally be here to make sure that everyone else knows how proud we are, or to convert a few more folks over for the cause.

Anyone who says they’re doing more than speculating about the effects of these increases is lying. I will say that looking at 15-20% of the costs of driving one of the cars that your two-car household and having that money available to offset the increased sale taxes may be a utopian pipe dream, but it’s giving folks some hope and optimism – maybe even a change in perspective.

André Natta is the publisher and managing editor of The Terminal. To submit letters in response to this commentary or to contact for general information, use any of the methods listed on our contact page.

A great idea leads to some questions about our future

I was standing in line and overheard a conversation between a man that was part of a group of five behind me and the woman that was positioned the entrance to the Pompeii exhibit at the Birmingham Museum of Art. I was already pleasantly surprised about 20 minutes earlier when we encountered the long line as we purchased tickets to the exhibit. I was surprised again when I heard the woman say that 1,562 people had entered the exhibit as of 3:45 p.m. that afternoon. Based on a pure guesstimate, it’d be safe to say that more than 1600 people went through the exhibit the day after Thanksgiving.

This is only a taste of what could happen if the museum were to be allowed to expand onto the property currently occupied by the Boutwell Auditorium. Our newly elected mayor has announced publicly that he would like to transfer or sell the building to museum for the purpose of allowing them to expand. There are some that would ask why the Southeast’s largest public museum needs to be enlarged. An easy answer is the fact that the current facility only allows for no more than ¼ of the museum’s collection to be on display at any one time. An expanded facility would allow for more of the collection to be on display, adding to the potential of larger traveling exhibits to be available to the people of Alabama and the surrounding region. Those types of exhibits serve as reasons for the development of additional hotel rooms, restaurants and retail businesses in our central business district (probably a better answer), adding to our economy, whether or not a tax or business license increase were to happen.

The museum’s riding high right now with two well-received exhibits as they finish an incredible year. The ability to announce this potential for expansion right now would no doubt also allow the issue of arts funding to stay in the front of many residents’ minds as our Cultural Alliance enters an unknown territory – a year without financial support from the Jefferson County Commission.

Holiday weekends aside, the fact that the museum has seen consistent crowds during the Pompeii and Folk Art exhibits speak to the importance of the arts to Jefferson County in general and Birmingham in particular.

Two questions to consider: First – Does the building really need to come down? That is a question that is up for debate. A simple answer is no; while many may believe that the Boutwell is not an acoustically pleasing venue for concerts and events, the shell could be maintained and the interior gutted for the purposes of serving as a museum/gallery. It would be the least expensive option and it would allow the city to maintain a piece of its urban fabric. A clean slate created by demolition would provide the opportunity to create a world-class edition to a world-class museum, providing yet another reason to visit, much in the same way that Moshe Safdie‘s Jepson Center for the Arts provides an artistic work unto itself at the Telfair Museum of Art in Savannah, Georgia. Something to think about…

The other question that’s seems to be becoming the norm in Birmingham is “How are we going to pay for it?” As optimistic as I am for a city that I choose to live in, I am increasingly nervous about how we’re going to move forward alone. Talk of regional cooperation that emerged from this year’s BIG Trip to Denver seems to have disappeared in favor of the “this is mine, that’s yours” mentality that existed before. Our current per capita income was $15,600 (you can also take a look at the numbers listed in our profile in Money’s 2006 Best Places to Live report). We are a regional hub that can set the example of what can happen if we work together. It will take the region to support the numerous construction projects that are about to take place within our city limits as well as a revamped mass transportation network. There will be a time in the near future where folks over the mountain will end up needing to ride that bus over to the museum thanks to $4/gallon gasoline prices.

Before we set out on our own and become even more isolationist than we’ve been already been, let’s see if we can build on what appeared to be a sincere attempt to solve regional problems together. Regionalism will eventually happen; it must for the city to grow and reach its potential. It would just be a shame to not embrace it and suffer the consequences of doing stuff as a tiny kingdom before joining the party.

André Natta is the publisher and managing editor of The Terminal. To submit letters in response to this commentary or to contact for general information, use any of the methods listed on our contact page.

How to change what's on the dial

I had two reminders in the last week that it was WBHM‘s (our local listener-supported station’s) fall pledge drive. The first was while I was driving to cover last week’s Design Review Committee (trust me, we did get a couple of things from the meeting, just nothing that we can publish… yet). Driving to the meeting I tuned into NPR’s All Things Considered (it’s a hold over from my days in Savannah – if I’m actually listening to something besides local talk in the morning, it’s ATC).

The second was from a MySpace bulletin sent by a regular reader of the site and someone that I really would like to hang out with some more just to figure out what makes him tick. It was the second reminder that made me begin to think about the power of the wallet.

Everyone is aware of the power of the wallet, or as it’s normally referred to, the “money talks” approach. Now I have heard both sides of the argument about whether or not people should use pledge drives to influence what a station plays, but I’ve never really offered an opinion about it, until now. It’s especially interesting to me as people who frequent the web are still upset about the pending forced shutdown of internet radio stations as we know them and the growing ability to find your “voice” on numerous websites and blogs without relying on a standard being placed before you.

People who have this belief that listener-supported radio can change at will don’t seem to realize that when they send in their contribution during the midday classical music show that they really can’t complain if they really want to hear jazz, or News & Notes, or see more in-depth series like Birmingham: The Urban Divide produced on a more frequent basis. They spoke with their wallet and said that they wanted to listen to classical. And there’s nothing wrong with classical. When you’re typing a story at lunchtime and you know that you want some background noise but realize that a) ESPN will distract you if you’re at home and b) you’ll just start singing along if you listen to just about anything else, you want classical.

I’m also not saying to hold back your contributions to WBHM or any other listener supported station. Trust me, if we were actually making money right now I’d be making my contribution to them either sometime during Marketplace or Tapestry. I just figured that those that say that nobody listens to them about programming options need to realize that the power is in your hands if you ever decide to use it. It will not change if you continue to not say anything.

The same argument could be applied to public television, but my use of the power of the wallet would be different there. I was silly enough to get an HDTV (for an insanely low price) a few years ago, leading to my new obsession over crisp clear pictures and what were incredible shows on the national PBS HD feed. I’m never going to blame APTV for not carrying the signal because the cost was insane and at the time it was only servicing those of us lucky (or crazy) to have paid for or found a good deal on a set. But I will still be upset with them for not getting Charlie Rose, though I guess I can watch it online nowadays, now can’t I?

Thoughts?

André Natta is the publisher and managing editor of The Terminal. To submit letters in response to this commentary or to contact for general information, use any of the methods listed on our contact page.

Using the bully pulpit in metro Birmingham

This morning people throughout metro Birmingham are waking up to fall-like weather and preparing for another full weekend of activities. Some will be visiting local libraries in Hoover and surfing the web to learn the results of an investigation into the Hoover Board of Education. Many residents have Hoover mayor Tony Petelos and the Hoover City Council to thank for that.

The mayor did something that will be fresh in the minds of many in Birmingham for months to come as we deal with our own educational system. He went into the belly of the beast and used the bully pulpit that comes with the role of mayor and strongly urged that the results of the report be released. He even went the extra mile and went on television explaining why he did it. The city council followed suit, providing the necessary pressure (and attention) to the situation that appeared to be needed.

The actions taken were extremely important and not necessarily unusual to the city of Birmingham and its dealings with its own board. The difference was the quietly aggressive approach taken by Mayor Petelos. He recognized it as an issue that was beginning to have an effect on the city and the school system and that it was leading to the city being viewed differently from the outside and he decided to take actions accordingly. There are some that live in Hoover that are always ready to say that they are going to surpass Birmingham in terms of size and importance – well this is a taste of what’s may come with it, though it will exist whether or not those goals are met. The city is growing and is close to having to deal with being urban, one of the very things that residents that moved out there originally were moving away from. It must begin to respond to that challenge, one that its mayor met head on and passed with flying colors.

The ability of the mayor’s office to affect change outside of its normal parameters is possible as proven by that recent incident in Hoover. There are many that see mayor-elect Langford as more than capable of bringing that mindset to the 3rd floor of Birmingham’s City Hall at the beginning of November. The opportunity to see it in use will no doubt come sooner rather than later.

One interesting thing about his pending first example is the fact that the citizens will hold him responsible for many things outside of his purview. He also will be criticized if it is not the general consensus of the city’s residents. Part of this first phase for Langford will be seeing how he reacts to those who share different viewpoints. He has already demonstrated that he is willing to work with area leaders to address changes and he is moving forward with an agenda without taking a back seat to efforts to call for a runoff from Patrick Cooper. This means that he may have already played that bully pulpit card, albeit quietly, for the first time, and it’s led to some interesting and progressive ideas for the region.

The mayor-elect said on Tuesday night that we needed to buckle up. We also need to be prepared for what’s to come in terms of Langford’s hopes for this city, just how that bully pulpit will be used to accomplish those goals and for the dialogue that will take place because of it.

André Natta is the publisher and managing editor of The Terminal. To submit letters in response to this commentary or to contact for general information, use any of the methods listed on our contact page. Otherwise, simply submit your comments below.

Election '07: Improved transit should be a no-brainer

It appears that transit is about to become a top priority of the Jefferson County Commission. Probably about the time this post appears online a meeting will either have just finished or still be going on with hopes of beginning the discussion about a truly regional mass transit system for grater Birmingham.

The three commissioners that attended this year’s Regional Chamber of Commerce BIG trip returned with visions of bringing regional cooperation to the forefront of economic development efforts here in Birmingham. This is while the governor speaks about introducing more toll roads into the state to handle the increasing traffic on the state’s busiest roads, including Highway 280.

There are some that believe that Commissioners Carns and Humphreys and Commission President Collins are sincere, yet some are also cynical about their chances of success. They have every reason to think that way. If the issue becomes one of partisan politics instead of one about improving the quality of life not just for the Birmingham region, but for the entire state, then it will certainly see a steep uphill battle. If it is brought to the people of the entire state for a vote as being only about Birmingham and not as an opportunity to demonstrate what can happen in the entire state, it will fail to be approved.

As the regional population ages and transplants and “boomerangs” move into our metropolitan area, the issue of reliable transit will become more and more important and relevant. The mayor and council at the center of the region have good intentions about how to assist our transit authority, though it appears that any true progress in providing temporary support to a transit system in need will now have to wait until it is determined who will be in a runoff for the city’s top job.

Those that agreed to be interviewed for our Your Questions, Their Answers series all agreed that Montgomery did not necessarily understand the importance of this issue to the people of metro Birmingham and the state in general. They all agreed that the mayor should take a larger role in advancing the issue. Whoever gets elected should find ways to work with the commission and keep them motivated to follow through on their commitment to moving the region forward.

For a city that used to boast one of the world’s larger streetcar systems, it should be a no-brainer to return to a reliance of alternative transportation options. Gas prices continue to climb and many are realizing that the commute time could be just a little more productive than it is now if they weren’t having to drive so much. But we do dare defend our rights, particularly against the issue of more taxation. Unfortunately, better quality will not come about in this case until we realize that we cannot more if we are not willing to pay more for it.

This may finally be the time when we stop being provincial in terms of selfishness and with regards to the thought of failure and we take advantage of this opportunity to demonstrate how something like a regional or even statewide transit system can help us bring more jobs into the state and allow more of our residents and visitors to enjoy what the state has to offer.

I’ve learned in my short time living here that the words taxes and transit should not be spoken depending on where you are. People need to use those words with frequency if this city is to regain the infrastructure needed to truly enjoy its urban fabric.

Election '07: definitions needed for urban success

Birmingham News building - Sept. 2007 Former SMN building

This first installment has less to do with comparing as it does with providing a backdrop for an interesting opinion.

There’s a distinct difference between the picture on your left and the one on your right.

The image on the left shows the former home of The Birmingham News in our city center being gutted for purposes of demolition. This will provide a net gain of 30 parking spaces after construction of what many would agree is a beautiful addition to the downtown Birmingham building stock directly across the street.

The image on the right shows the former Savannah Morning News building in downtown Savannah after being completely gutted for purposes of being used for mixed use development in their downtown district called News Place on Ellis Square. To develop it the City of Savannah had to demolish a parking deck on the site of the old City Market and replace it with underground parking, a project that will now provide more than 1,000 spaces to visitors and residents visiting one of the city’s busier districts.

The second example is one that will be part of a region that will have the same population as metro Birmingham in the next 20 years (when you include the portions of South Carolina that are never included in these studies). Some think that prediction could be a little on the conservative side. The first is the one that we currently reside in; one that will become a larger metropolitan area but not necessarily be that urban environment that we all hope and strive for if projects like The News’ continue to occur.

Before someone tells me that I’m using the term incorrectly, I’ll say that urban for me is when you can walk down the street in several neighborhoods and get what you need. It means reliable mass transit that gives you an excuse not to drive. It means not necessarily building taller but building smarter. There are some that have said that we need to build taller buildings just because Mobile built one. My question is response to theirs is, ‘Do we need it now or later?

The idea of losing another beautiful historic building in the name of progress disturbs me, but not in the way you might think. It is what that demolition means, or what it should trigger. See, I’m still not sure that losing building like the News’ former home or our namesake Terminal Station will ever really stir the emotion that is needed to fully realize an urban revitalization renaissance in Birmingham.

I’ve been accused of wanting to save too much, but hear me out. Every time I hand out a business card or show someone one of our t-shirts, they all say “It’s a shame what happened to Terminal Station… I wish that we could bring it back.” There are those that say “I wish we’d done more to save (insert building name here)” when the reason it wasn’t saved was because no one made it an issue, or at least not one that would stir up emotions from both sides. Those feelings are necessary for a city to move forward. I realize that there is a past that few want to remember. There are several pasts that I’m sure many of the specters do not want us to forget in fear that we will repeat them. Some would say we already have.

So what actually makes Birmingham what it is? Why is it that when people fly in and see Vulcan and a now-lit City Federal sign that they marvel at how much there is to do? Perhaps its some of those same things that we think are outdated – the remnants of our urban fabric, or at least the potential for the urban lifestyle that so many seek when they sign on the dotted line to live in our city center and our neighborhoods nowadays. As an aside, we must also remember that the urban lifestyle sought by those that are new to it is not all that it is made up to be on television (but that’s a topic for another time).

Why save buildings? Why not ask those cities that we are always trying to compare ourselves with. Despite their new tall glass towers and their one of their key characteristics is their ability to hold onto a piece of their past. For every building that is torn down, one that evokes the same memories that Loveman’s or Pizitz does for this city adapted for a new use.

You do not have to save every building. What you do need to do is be sure that you’re not going to leave a hole in the fabric of a city’s history that is too large to be mended.

André Natta is the publisher and managing editor of The Terminal. You may contact him directly at andre[at]bhamterminal.com.