Montgomery development news

[SpawnOfVulcan]

Originally Posted by Dyingyak

Sadly...any "state" agency can do whatever they want, where ever they want on state-owned property. Sad commentary in my opinion because the wants of any state agency are not always those of the community...obviously because the RSA doesn't have to follow the SmartCode in downtown Montgomery.

RSA isn't a state agency. But, they do get treated as such.

[bystander1]

Originally Posted by Alabadrock

I really don't think it'll be THAT big of a distraction. It seems that it is set back far enough from Dexter that it might even look like it's on another street.

Yes, I agree. It will still be the same ol' view up Dexter Ave.

[Dyingyak]

Originally Posted by Alabadrock

RSA isn't a state agency. But, they do get treated as such.

Sure looks like it is to me...on the state's list of state agencies.

http://info.alabama.gov/directory.aspx?range=5&fs=

[SpawnOfVulcan]

Originally Posted by Dyingyak

Sure looks like it is to me...on the state's list of state agencies.

http://info.alabama.gov/directory.aspx?range=5&fs=

Hmmmm, guess I was wrong. I'd always heard that it was a private entity.

[thoraudio]

Originally Posted by Alabadrock

Hmmmm, guess I was wrong. I'd always heard that it was a private entity.

It's quasi-governmental. Just independent enough to keep the legislature's hands off the money.

[bystander1]

You forgot one word...

Originally Posted by thoraudio

It's quasi-governmental. Just independent enough to keep the legislature's grubby hands off the money.

[Dyingyak]

Originally Posted by thoraudio

It's quasi-governmental.

There are entirely to many of those entities this state!

[Dyingyak]

from today's Advertiser:

Historic clock returns to downtown Montgomery

A clock is changing time, helping downtown's past be­come part of its future.

City Officials hope the return of the old Klein & Son clock to its original location at the corner of South Court Street and Dexter Avenue will be a pivotal mo­ment in the redevelopment of the currently distressed lower Dexter Avenue area.

"This is the beginning of the revitalization effort of this street," Montgomery Mayor Todd Strange said during a dedi­cation ceremony Tuesday morn­ing.

While the investment of en­ergy and money in the river­front is starting to pay off, the city has tried without success so far to jumpstart the revitaliza­tion of one of the most historic streets in the country.

City planners hope the ener­gy that is building on the river­front revitalization, which in­cludes the Alley, Riverwalk Stadium and the Renaissance Montgomery Hotel & Spa at the Convention Center, will expand to take in Dexter Avenue. Strange said this would be a "natural extension" of the revi­talization on the riverfront.

Ken Reynolds, the city's re­tail development coordinator, said development interest con­cerning Dexter Avenue is begin­ning to brew. There are two businesses -- a restaurant and an Internet café -- that current­ly are negotiating the terms of lease agreements for locations on Dexter Avenue. He also noted that three buildings currently are being renovated.

Reynolds said he thought the clock would be a focal point for Dexter Avenue, much as the wa­ter tower has been for the Alley. But the water tower's relocation from atop a building in the Low­er Commerce Historic District to the sidewalk was controver­sial. The clock's return to its original location has earned nothing but praise.

While it remains to be seen if the clock will be a catalyst for re­vitalization on Dexter Avenue, for Montgomerians it is already rekindling memories of when it was a significant landmark in the city's bustling downtown.

There have been marriage proposals under the clock. There have been historic moments, many captured in photos with the 15-foot-tall clock in the background. There have been many people who showed up on time because of that four-face clock.

Now the clock is back for round two of memory-making. Its return may even bring back the tradition of meeting up with friends and family at the clock at Klein's.

"It is a great pleasure for our family to donate the clock (to the city)," Bill Heilpern said during the dedication ceremony. "It's back where it needed to be."

The clock was moved in 1986 when Heilpern moved the store from Eastdale Mall to Zelda Road. City crews moved the clock from Zelda Road to 1 Dext­er Ave. on Monday and were able to use the old wiring to pow­er the clock.

Heilpern donated the clock, which would cost about $100,000 to replicate today, because he is moving the store from the Zelda Road location to EastChase. He hopes to open that location this month.

Good job moving the clock to Court Square...to bad he didn't move his business back downtown as well.

[bystander1]

Originally Posted by Dyingyak

Good job moving the clock to Court Square...to bad he didn't move his business back downtown as well.

For real.

The internet cafe' will be a nice addition to Dexter, along with the new "Buddy's". Isn't that going to be the "western beer bar"?

[philopdx]

Originally Posted by bystander1

I'm unloading my camera with some pics I took early one Sunday morning of the new RSA Judicial Building going up downtown, and some other miscellaneous pics. Enjoy!

From a distance, to the left.



The pedestrian bridge has been installed...

Even though I was born and raised in the gump, I'm still positively stunned that there are leaves on the trees as of Dec 2nd, and many of those leaves are still green. Our leaves in the Pac-NW have been gone for weeks! And it was 12 degrees here two days ago. Yowza!

Although I consider myself to be by far the harshest critic of Montgomery on these boards, I am mightily impressed by the pedestrian bridge. It, along with the alley and the proposed changes to Madison (and Dexter?) Avenues, are finally something you guys got right.

Bronner's hideous white elephant, however, is another matter.

[SpawnOfVulcan]

Originally Posted by philopdx

Even though I was born and raised in the gump, I'm still positively stunned that there are leaves on the trees as of Dec 2nd, and many of those leaves are still green. Our leaves in the Pac-NW have been gone for weeks! And it was 12 degrees here two days ago. Yowza!

Although I consider myself to be by far the harshest critic of Montgomery on these boards, I am mightily impressed by the pedestrian bridge. It, along with the alley and the proposed changes to Madison (and Dexter?) Avenues are finally something you guys got right.

Bronner's hideous white elephant, however, is another matter.

The entire state has been slow to lose its leaves. The trees in my yard in North Alabama JUST got finished shedding. BUT, last night it got down to 19 degrees in Decatur.

Of course, some of the trees you see in those pictures might be pines, magnolias, or live oaks, which don't lose their leaves.

[philopdx]

Originally Posted by Alabadrock

The entire state has been slow to lose its leaves. The trees in my yard in North Alabama JUST got finished shedding. BUT, last night it got down to 19 degrees in Decatur.

Of course, some of the trees you see in those pictures might be pines, magnolias, or live oaks, which don't lose their leaves.

The differences in vegetation are striking, and more so for me since I've been gone. I do see a few live oaks in the pics above, but I was referring the the lime-green color of those.... whatever those other trees are. Maples?

Another thing I have not gotten used to is the price differential in Christmas trees. I remember a good 7 or 8 foot real tree in Montgomery would run $70, maybe $90 bucks. Out here, of course, we are surrounded by Spruces and Firs so extremely opulent Christmas trees are a pittance. My boss told me his 17-foot tree cost....$24. Gotta love Portland!

I am very sorry for turning this into a botanist's thread. Back to buildings!

[OldCloverdale]

The Montgomery City Council will meet at 5 p.m. Tuesday in the council chamber.


Prayer by Councillor Cornelius "C.C." Calhoun or guest


Pledge of Allegiance


Approval of December 1, 2009 Work Session Minutes


Approval of December 1, 2009 Regular Council Meeting Minutes


Mayor's Message


Special Committee Reports


Public Communications on Agenda Items (To address the Council during this time, the Roster must be signed before meeting begins indicating agenda item number to be discussed.)


OLD BUSINESS


1. Application for a Lounge Retail Liquor - Class I License by Antoine Gillespie Green, d/b/a Da Shot House, 1700 Bell Street.


2. Application for a Lounge Retail Liquor - Class I License by Phylesia Diana Lambert, d/b/a Greenboy Arcade, 536 Mobile Street.


NEW BUSINESS


3. Application for a Lounge Retail Liquor - Class I License by Buddys Bar and Grill LLC, d/b/a Buddys, 62 Dexter Avenue.


4. Application for a Restaurant Retail Liquor License by Robert Baumhower, d/b/a Baumhower's Restaurant, 2465 Eastern Boulevard.


5. Application for a Restaurant Retail Liquor License by Hurricane Entertainment LLC, d/b/a Key Largo Bar and Grill, 1343 Dalraida Road.


6. Resolution reappointing George H. Cox to the Parks and Recreation Board by Councillor Smith.


7. Resolution reappointing Scott Miller to the Board of Trustees - Retirement Fund by Councillor Pruitt.


8. Resolution reappointing James E. Vice, Jr. to the Parks and Recreation Board by Councillor Pruitt.


9. Resolution declaring public nuisances, authorizing immediate abatement and assessing the cost of abatement of public nuisances on various lots pursuant to Ordinance No. 34-2009.


10. Council as a Committee.


11. Public Communications on Non-Agenda Items (To address the Council during this time, the City Clerk must have been contacted prior to Noon Monday)

[bystander1]

Great move. Baumhower's Wings will be moving across the street into the old Smokey Bones building. It's much larger.

I wonder if Buddy's will have live bands like 'Off The Wagon' had?

[OldCloverdale]

December 21, 2009


Montgomery officials waiting to assess trolley's impact

By Jill Nolin

The city's new trolley routes, the Entertainment Express, have been well received by Maxwell Air Force Base, but interest has been lukewarm in Old Cloverdale.

City officials hope that will change once the weather warms and the Biscuits baseball season starts up again in the spring.

Mayor Todd Strange said he would want to wait a full six months before assessing the routes and considering any changes.

But the mayor did say he was pleased with the participation at Maxwell, which accounts for as much as 80 percent of the total ridership so far.

"That is as important as anything -- to get Maxwell downtown and to Cloverdale," Strange said.

The Entertainment Express, which started in early November, replaced the lunch trolley in downtown Montgomery. Whereas the lunch trolley had a relatively strong start-up ridership that died off, city officials hope ridership on the Entertainment Express might start slow but will pick up over time.

So far, the trolleys are picking up an average of 100 people each week, with the trolleys running from 6:30 to 11:30 p.m. Thursday, Friday and Saturday.

In November, 475 people rode the trolley. For the first two weekends in December, 186 people have boarded the trolleys, which connect Old Cloverdale and Maxwell to downtown.

Friday is typically the night with the highest ridership, according to Kelvin Miller, general manager for the Montgomery Area Transit System. This past weekend was the exception, with it being the first time that Friday was not the strongest night.

The breakdown: 33 people rode Thursday, Dec. 10, 12 on Friday, Dec. 11, and six Saturday, Dec. 12.

"Friday night is the most popular night. The large majority of ridership is coming from Maxwell, and it seems the folks at Maxwell are going out on Friday night more than they are on any other night," Miller said.

Miller said he was not surprised by Maxwell's interest because Maxwell has a high concentration of people and many of those people do not have their own vehicle or do not have access to a vehicle.

"What we're thinking is, come springtime, that we may get a lot more riders. Wintertime doesn't seem to spur people to go out and do things," Miller said.

Miller said the time could be adjusted at some point, but it is not clear right now how it might change. Some people complain that the trolleys start up too late in the evening; others complain that the trolleys stop running too early, Miller said. And whatever change is made must stay within budget.

Additional Facts
FIND OUT MORE
To find out when an Entertainment Express trolley will be at a pick-up point, call 262-7356.

[OldCloverdale]

December 20, 2009


East Boulevard business owners: City too focused on downtown

By Cosby Woodruff

The thought of another downtown pub crawl makes Vince Saele's skin crawl.

Saele owns Rock Bottom American Pub on East Boul­evard, and he is perhaps the most vocal of a group of busi­ness owners who feel that their tax dollars are unfairly supporting competing estab­lishments. As the Alley itself is owned by the city of Mont­gomery, Saele worries too much attention is being fo­cused on the businesses there.

The businesses are inde­pendent, but Saele worries that the city partnership in the project is unfair.

City spokeswoman Carol Gunter insisted that is not the case.

"It is just what is going on downtown is new," she said. "Having a vibrant down­town helps the whole city. It helps bring money to the city by bringing conventions downtown."

Saele insists he is not anti-downtown or anti-Alley.

"I pay for my own promo­tions, so the businesses there should pay for their promo­tions," he said.

He is particularly upset by a shuttle that carries week­end revelers to and from Maxwell Air Force Base, downtown and the Clo­verdale entertainment dis­trict. He fears the shuttle will make other areas more attractive to one of his top sources of clients.

"The military is good to us," he said. "We get a lot of our customers from the mili­tary."

Montgomery Mayor Todd Strange said the shuttle, called the Entertainment Ex­press, is a service to the ma­jor area for revelers.

"We can't do a private shuttle to every entertain­ment venue in this city," he said.

Saele agreed that down­town needed revitalizing, but said it should have been a gradual process, not one primed by tax dollars. And as badly as downtown needed revitalization, he said the segment of the Boulevard be­tween Troy Highway and In­terstate 85 will soon be in the same shape if it is neglected.

His business, a daytime restaurant and nighttime party spot, filled a building left empty by a national chain eatery. Within a cou­ple of miles of his place, he sees several other restaurant buildings once filled by na­tional casual chains sitting empty. Retailers, from small shops to big-box stores, also are closing along the once-thriving shopping district.

Saele fears that without support from the city, that part of the Boulevard will come to resemble the stretch between Troy Highway and I-65. That is part of another revitalization effort at the city, and Saele worries that is more costly than support­ing existing businesses.

One of Saele's neighbors, Don Parker of Baumhower's Restaurant, shares his con­cerns to a point.

"It would be wonderful to have the support the Alley gets," he said. "The Alley brought a change to that part of town, but any support would be appreciated."

Strange praised the com­pany for expanding in the city and said that is what makes business work.

"Government can't do ev­erything," he said. "What we can do is provide the infra­structure to allow entrepre­neurs to grow their business­es."

Strange compared owning the Alley, which he called a pedestrian walkway, to the roads in front of businesses on the Boulevard.

Gunter pointed out the Al­ley's location near down­town convention facilities and lodging, but Saele in­sisted that the I-85/Boulevard interchange still has the largest concentra­tion of hotel rooms in Mont­gomery.

"Some of my best market­ing comes when a guest goes to the front desk and asks where to eat," he said.

One of his biggest worries is getting squeezed between two popular entertainment areas. Not only do Boulevard business owners have an eye on downtown, they also watch with growing frustra­tion as retailers pull up roots and move to the EastChase area.

Saele knows that enter­tainment establishments will follow the retail custom­ers, and he worries tourists will be directed to the down­town area. That means the Boulevard, already in early stages of decline, will find it­self spiraling out of control, he worries.

"I don't want it to become one giant eyesore," he said.

Gunter asked for patience from business owners in oth­er parts of Montgomery.

"We know it appears we are ignoring them, but that is not it at all," she said. "We are working on stuff all over Montgomery.

"The Boulevard is an area that Montgomery wants to see keep retailers in there."

[OldCloverdale]

December 20, 2009


Baumhower's chooses to stay close to home

By Cosby Woodruff

Baumhower's was a favor­ite eating spot on the East Boulevard before a series of national casual restaurants opened, then closed.

When the restaurant real­ized it would not be able to work out an expiring lease at its current location, it be­gan scouting for new spots. It looked at the hot locations -- Prattville and EastChase -- before deciding on an abandoned restaurant build­ing almost directly across the Boulevard.

Baumhower's will close its original Montgomery lo­cation at the end of today's business and on Tuesday open in a former Smokey Bones location on the other side of the Boulevard. Com­pany owner Bob Baumhow­er decided that the restau­rant would stay on the Boulevard for a number of reasons, according to gener­al manager Don Parker.

That doesn't mean it is closing the door on the rest of the River Region. In fact, Baumhower's plans a down­town location, in the new RSA headquarters building, to open in the first quarter of 2010.

The Alabama-based chain came to Montgomery as Baumhower's Wings Sports Grille. It will change its name to Baumhower's Res­taurant to reflect an expand­ing menu, Parker said.

"That just reflects the changing of the brand," he said.

That location will focus on breakfast and lunch for workers in the downtown area. The Boulevard loca­tion will focus on lunch, din­ner and the early party crowd.

Parker pointed to the traf­fic passing in front of his building recently and said that it still has one of the best daily vehicle counts of any spot in the city. He also said the company just didn't want to be part of the mass exodus from the area.

"Bob decided he would like to stay on the Boule­vard," he said.

"We were afraid we would get lost in a move."

The building, which will seat about 270, is expected to open at 4 p.m. Tuesday.

[Capital Heights]

From Montgomery Advertiser:

Plasma plant presents powerful possibilities for Montgomery
By Jill Nolin • [email protected] • December 26, 2009


HUNTSVILLE -- Montgomery envisions a green future, both because it may help the area become one of the most environmentally friendly in the country and because it could save millions of dollars in the process.
Montgomery is trying to do this by becoming the first city in the country to embrace what could literally be one of the nation's hottest technologies.
Using temperatures as high as 3,200 degrees Fahrenheit, a plasma gasification plant could potentially convert up to 175,000 tons of household waste into energy or reusable byproducts -- both of which can be sold for profit.
The temperatures used in the process are so high that proponents of the plant are saying it could recycle virtually all the city's garbage, as long as it was not hazardous waste.
The plant could also save Montgomery millions while weaning it off of a landfill. But while it could be good for the environment and for the city's budget, it could also mean a plump return for investors willing to fund the cutting edge technology.
If the plant was built here, it would make Montgomery the first city in the world to use graphite arc plasma to gasify household waste.
And, other than a slight release of sodium chloride, which is what makes up table salt, the tests conducted have not revealed any other potential threat to the environment.

[SpawnOfVulcan]

Originally Posted by Capital Heights

From Montgomery Advertiser:

Plasma plant presents powerful possibilities for Montgomery
By Jill Nolin • [email protected] • December 26, 2009


HUNTSVILLE -- Montgomery envisions a green future, both because it may help the area become one of the most environmentally friendly in the country and because it could save millions of dollars in the process.
Montgomery is trying to do this by becoming the first city in the country to embrace what could literally be one of the nation's hottest technologies.
Using temperatures as high as 3,200 degrees Fahrenheit, a plasma gasification plant could potentially convert up to 175,000 tons of household waste into energy or reusable byproducts -- both of which can be sold for profit.
The temperatures used in the process are so high that proponents of the plant are saying it could recycle virtually all the city's garbage, as long as it was not hazardous waste.
The plant could also save Montgomery millions while weaning it off of a landfill. But while it could be good for the environment and for the city's budget, it could also mean a plump return for investors willing to fund the cutting edge technology.
If the plant was built here, it would make Montgomery the first city in the world to use graphite arc plasma to gasify household waste.
And, other than a slight release of sodium chloride, which is what makes up table salt, the tests conducted have not revealed any other potential threat to the environment.

Sounds like an awesome opportunity for the city and state. If this is successful, it would make Montgomery VERY appealing as a green industrial center, not to mention the benefits for BOTH Birmingham and Montgomery.

[OldCloverdale]

December 28, 2009

Recyclers undeterred: Some Montgomery residents continue practice despite overall drop in participation

By Jill Nolin

It's a most unnatural deed for Donna Farrior, but if she must, she will throw away her plastic bottles -- for now.

The Montgomery resident has recycled in her home for so long that it has become a lifestyle for her. She recycles everything that the city's new recycling program will accept.

But Farrior is in the minority.

When Montgomery ended its curbside recycling program because of budget cuts this year, it also ended the recycling ef­forts of the majority of Montgomery households. Since the city stopped pickups it is estimated that the number of house­holds that recycle in the city has dropped from about 21,000 to about 3,000.

It hasn't dissuaded Farrior, who uses cloth bags when she buys groceries, drinks water from a glass instead of plastic bot­tles, and yes, still recycles.

"I still recycle. The hardest thing is just remembering which Saturday to get it up there (to the drop-off location)," said Far­rior, who lives off of Carter Hill Road in the midtown area. (Mount Scrap will take No. 1 and No. 2 plastics, but that would re­quire Farrior to make a special trip for just plastic bottles.)

For Farrior, recycling is engrained in her. So when the city ended its curbside recycling program, which started in 1989, she adjusted and continued to recycle. She collects the recyclable items in her garage and drops them off at Dannelly Elemen­tary School on Carter Hill Road on the first and third Saturdays.

Al Cantrell, who owns Al's Flowers in the Mulberry business district, was simi­larly undeterred -- although disappointed -- when the city nixed curbside recycling.

"I am a recycling freak. I recycle every­thing," he said. "I just feel like it's the right thing to do. I don't feel like we al­ways need to make a decision money-wise."

"(The trash) isn't going anywhere. I'm just real, real adamant about it. We need to be recycling for the future generations and for the world," Cantrell said.

Not all of Cantrell's friends are as de­voted. When recycling meant holding onto the recyclable items for a couple weeks, if not longer sometimes, and then driving to a drop-off location, some lost interest.

Farrior and Cantrell are among the avid recycling participants who have followed the city from the curbside program to the drop-off system that replaced it. But that move has lost many of the other partici­pants who would recycle when recycling was as convenient as putting items in a bag and putting it by the road.

Whereas about 30 percent of Mont­gomery's 70,000 households, or roughly about 21,000 households, participated in the curbside recycling program, only about 3,000 people are now bringing their recycl­able items at one of the city's drop-off points, according to Susan Carmichael, program director.

"The participation was there, especial­ly in the east," she said. "I think, on the whole, it was an excellent program. But in the big picture, the numbers just didn't make sense."

A major issue was the amount of the recyclable items that ended up being re­cycled -- or rather, the amount that didn't.

The city takes its recyclable items to McInnis Recycling Center on Norman Bridge Road, but the program could not handle the workload, and it was not feasi­ble to take the recycling to another center.

The result was that many of the orange bags in which residents put materials they believed were being recycled were instead being dumped at the city landfill.

It's clear that the city lost the majority of the recycling participants when the con­venience of curbside recycling was lost.

Montgomery has entered into a con­tract with a Huntsville company to use a cutting-edge technology that could even­tually recycle virtually all of the city's gar­bage, not just items such as paper, plastic or glass that have long been seen as re­cyclable. But even if it is as successful as the city and the company hope, that would be years down the road.

Carmichael said the Clean City Commis­sion, which oversees the recycling pro­gram, wants to do something now, and that the best way to accomplish this is to try to bring back some of that conven­ience.

"We just want to keep recycling alive," Carmichael said.

The goal is to get as many recycling containers as possible out in the nine City Council districts. With the city's original plan for drop-off recycling, a drop-off point is offered in each district on the first and third Saturday of each month.

The containers would give participants the opportunity to drop off their recycl­able items whenever they wanted to, not just on the designated Saturdays.

The containers are available, but the city needs locations for the containers. Carmichael said she is trying to work with churches, schools, businesses and neigh­borhoods to identify locations.

Some organizations have expressed ap­prehension about playing host to a con­tainer out of fear that the containers would become a dumping point for all gar­bage. Carmichael said the companies, J.B. Waste Connections and Mount Scrap, would monitor the containers to deter such activity.

Carmichael said a news conference will be held in January to announce the loca­tions of these containers. Anyone interest­ed in having a container on their property can call the Clean City Commission at 241-2925 to make the arrangements.

Eastern Hills Baptist Church at 3604 Pleasant Ridge Road, is one of the Mont­gomery churches that have agreed to have a container placed on its property. The container is already in place behind the church.

Dan Harrison, administrator at the church, said the church wanted to do what it could to help the recycling program.

"It's really sad because I've only lived here for about eight months and other cit­ies I've lived in have had (curbside recy­cling programs). For the capital city not to have one is pretty bad," Harrison said.

Additional Facts
WHAT YOU NEED TO KNOW
Christmas tree recycling: All old trees can be brought to the Saturday trash collection points Jan. 2. The recycled trees are mulched or used for fish hatcheries in local lakes. Trees put out by the road are not recycled.


Drop-off sites: Aluminum, paper and cardboard are accepted at the following drop-off sites on the first and third Saturday of each month:
Halcyon Elementary
Goodwyn Jr. High
Dannelly Elementary
Wares Ferry Elementary
Peter Crump Elementary
Bellingrath Jr. High
Southlawn Elementary




Drop-off containers are also available anytime at McInnis Recycling Center on 4341 Norman Bridge Road and Mount Scrap Material Co. at 824 N. Decatur St. McInnis will only take paper, aluminum and cardboard, and Mount Scrap will take those items plus Nos. 1 and 2 plastics.


The new drop-off containers will be announced in January. The Mount Scrap containers will take only newspaper and magazines. The J.B. Waste Connections containers, which are divided in halves, will take mixed paper and cardboard in one part and plastic and metals in the other.



Source: The city of Montgomery