Birmingham Discussion Thread

[Tourian]

Originally Posted by tascalisa

I'm not terribly concerned about the number of hotel rooms, either. As long as the city has a solid traffic control plan, it would be easy to get folks from hotels down 280 to the BJCC within half an hour. This would also be the perfect opportunity for a Hyatt, Omni, or Hilton to buy the AT&T building and convert it to a hotel.

I too think Perez is aware that our amount of available convention space is low, but I would think he'd expect the city solve that issue in some way between now and 2020. Frankly, the city is better off going ahead and increasing the amount of square footage before 2020 anyway for the purpose of attracting larger conventions in the future.

Imagine if this does bring about a greater sense of urgency to improve, more so than the last bid did and without the backroom loaded handshakes.

I don't know if/how they BJCC could be expanded with the money they have budgeted, but if they could do it and more hotel projects pop up along with the new bus service taking off, I'd have no problem with that.

[Tourian]

Over half a billion in investments and more than 3000 jobs added to the metro in 2017.

http://alabamanewscenter.com/2018/04...000-jobs-2017/

[Tourian]

The wait is finally over for Highlands Bar and Grill as it wins "Best" award.

https://www.al.com/entertainment/ind...he_highla.html

[SpawnOfVulcan]

Originally Posted by Tourian

The wait is finally over for Highlands Bar and Grill as it wins "Best" award.

https://www.al.com/entertainment/ind...he_highla.html

Bout time. Their pastry chef, Dolester Miles, also one nation's most outstanding pastry chef.

Another feather in the cap of Birmingham's mediocre food scene!

[Tourian]

Yeah, I guess there's one place you can get a mediocre plate of food in this city.

Big job project coming to Bessemer.
https://www.al.com/news/birmingham/i...es_bessem.html

1500-3000 jobs is a huge deal for West Jefferson county and the metro as a whole.

[SpawnOfVulcan]

Such mediocrity!!!!!!

[Tourian]

Amazon considering dist. center for Bessemer. Next day Prime is going to be awesome.

https://www.al.com/business/index.ss...t_of_bess.html

[Tourian]

New police chief.
https://www.bizjournals.com/birmingh...ice-chief.html

New football team.
https://www.bizjournals.com/birmingh...franchise.html

Not bad for a Monday.

[atlantaguy]

Originally Posted by tascalisa

Such mediocrity!!!!!!

I've been traveling my ass off for work the past 9 months, and hardly ever post anymore - but I lurk and try to keep up with things. I don't feel like going back through multiple pages, but did someone label you guys as mediocre?

A pox on their family if they did!

[SpawnOfVulcan]

Originally Posted by atlantaguy

I've been traveling my ass off for work the past 9 months, and hardly ever post anymore - but I lurk and try to keep up with things. I don't feel like going back through multiple pages, but did someone label you guys as mediocre?

A pox on their family if they did!

Yea, some new person who is actually from Birmingham, if I'm not mistaken.

[jackofalltrades]

Originally Posted by tascalisa

Yea, some new person who is actually from Birmingham, if I'm not mistaken.

Are you talking about me? I'm not sure I really said that but I guess I'll say it now. Yes I'm new and yes I'm from Birmingham and yes it's a very mediocre city. It's not really a city that inspires greatness. You won't see many top-tier things. Saks is a muted down version of other Saks locations. You won't be tripping over Bentleys and Rolls at Bhams fanciest restaurants. You'll get weird looks if you're a guy wearing designer anything.

Now, it's NOT mediocre for Alabama (comparing to Montgomery, Hville, Mobile) but it certainly is when compared to many of the great cities that young people are moving to.

Catch me here... young people are catching on, they can do better in live living elsewhere. They can make more and spend more. There's a longer career runway in front of them in other places. I'm speaking mainly for careers in business, accounting and finance as these generally follow corporate successes.

Young people are intrigued by the fancy glitz that Nashville, ATL, Miami, Tampa, Dallas, Austin, Denver etc have to offer. Being close to that feels fun and often offers more opportunity for them to feed of the mega rich. Birmingham's mega-rich are not only very old but don't have the deep pockets these other places have. They're not investing their money in corporate infrastructure; instead they're donating it all to Alabama or Auburn so kids can go there and move out of state when they graduate.

This not a hater post but you have to understand where you stand before you can grow. There appears to me that the Bham homers have infiltrated this thread and I'll probably get some nasty's from people who are offended but know I'm pretty spot on here.

[SpawnOfVulcan]

My personal issue with you isn't your honesty. I don't think any of us are blind to the issues the region faces, of which there are too many to name. My problem is that you have responded in a pretty hostile manner to a lot of us.

It's perfectly fine to point out issues, but you seem to make it seem like they're the only thing happening in town. No one around here is putting Birmingham on the same level as Nashville or Austin, you're making that up in your own head.

And personally, I'm hardly a homer. I didn't grow up in Birmingham and I've only lived here for a couple of years. Yea, I like living here, but I don't recall coming on the forum and writing love poems about it...

[Bamablazer]

I have lived in Birmingham most of my life, I have seen times when there was absolutely nothing going on Downtown and around the city. So forgive me for being a little giddy about the few things that are now going on. Birmingham could of just sat here waiting for something to happen but we did not, we invested in our city (Regions Field, Railroad park, the CrossPlex, Uptown, the Airport and soon another 300 million dollars on the BJCC).
I am certainly not comparing us to any of the Cities you named. I am just happy we are not back sliding like in years past. We are well aware of the fact that we are moving slower than a lot of other cities here in the south, but we have not stopped. It may pay off in the future or it may not, then so be it.

[Tourian]

Originally Posted by jackofalltrades

Are you talking about me? I'm not sure I really said that but I guess I'll say it now. Yes I'm new and yes I'm from Birmingham and yes it's a very mediocre city. It's not really a city that inspires greatness. You won't see many top-tier things. Saks is a muted down version of other Saks locations. You won't be tripping over Bentleys and Rolls at Bhams fanciest restaurants. You'll get weird looks if you're a guy wearing designer anything.

Being young and caught up over glitz and material items has its time and place. Some of us are looking for more or different and Birmingham has been doing a good job of improving on that lately. If all you care about is how many big baller cars you see in the parking lot of wherever you go and high fashion clothes, than there are probably only a handful of places in this country you'd be satisfied with. I mean seriously, who cares. You wouldn't know money if it was sitting right next you.
Some 30K millionaire (not my term look it up) struggling to make lease payments on a base C-class wearing the latest designer outfit would catch your eye over some guy in jeans and a button down driving a paid for Powerstroke Limited F-250 that cost twice as much - that you would thumb your nose at. People around here aren't about flash and glitz in that way, or perhaps they are, they just demonstrate it in ways you don't care about - but it is obvious that is all you value. Maybe moving on would be the best thing to do.

[SpawnOfVulcan]

Drove up the Expressway earlier today. Vesta is about 5-6 floors higher than Temple Beth-El.

[jackofalltrades]

Originally Posted by Tourian

Being young and caught up over glitz and material items has its time and place. Some of us are looking for more or different and Birmingham has been doing a good job of improving on that lately. If all you care about is how many big baller cars you see in the parking lot of wherever you go and high fashion clothes, than there are probably only a handful of places in this country you'd be satisfied with. I mean seriously, who cares. You wouldn't know money if it was sitting right next you.
Some 30K millionaire (not my term look it up) struggling to make lease payments on a base C-class wearing the latest designer outfit would catch your eye over some guy in jeans and a button down driving a paid for Powerstroke Limited F-250 that cost twice as much - that you would thumb your nose at. People around here aren't about flash and glitz in that way, or perhaps they are, they just demonstrate it in ways you don't care about - but it is obvious that is all you value. Maybe moving on would be the best thing to do.

What I'm saying is those types of people go to attractive places and they normally represent a young vibrant professional culture that Birmingham does not have because it keeps losing good jobs (excluding some healthcare).

In the same way you making a passing judgement about a department store by the quality of cars you see in the parking lot, cities can be judged the same way. Or, for right or for wrong, they ARE judged that way.

Does NOT mean some great things are going on but you guys seem to be advertisers for the city. I'm sure they're paying you somehow. Impossible to get an honest discussion going without people get butthurt when someone says their city isn't world class.

[Tourian]

Originally Posted by jackofalltrades

What I'm saying is those types of people go to attractive places and they normally represent a young vibrant professional culture that Birmingham does not have because it keeps losing good jobs (excluding some healthcare).

That's a huge stretch and merely you just tying two random stats together to prove a weak premise. There are places that exist with vibrancy and young pro culture that still don't have a lot of Rolls and Bentleys around.

In the same way you making a passing judgement about a department store by the quality of cars you see in the parking lot, cities can be judged the same way. Or, for right or for wrong, they ARE judged that way.

By shallow people sure. The area that store is located in generally determines that. You can see high dollar cars at Wal-Mart on 280 that you won't see in Roebuck. People with money sometimes drive cheap cars. Lots of professional people can't afford a Rolls or a Bentley, those are extremely expensive vehicles generally for the 1% of the 1%.

Does NOT mean some great things are going on but you guys seem to be advertisers for the city. I'm sure they're paying you somehow. Impossible to get an honest discussion going without people get butthurt when someone says their city isn't world class.

Impossible to have an honest discussion with a blatant trolls who move goal posts around, build strawmen, fabricate quotes, tie vague personal hang ups to larger issues as "proof" of their conclusions and get butthurt when someone pokes holes in their weak "argument."

[SpawnOfVulcan]

Originally Posted by jackofalltrades

Does NOT mean some great things are going on but you guys seem to be advertisers for the city. I'm sure they're paying you somehow. Impossible to get an honest discussion going without people get butthurt when someone says their city isn't world class.

Advertisers? 99.9% of what goes on in these regional forums is commenting on new developments and construction progress, so of course you're not going to hear a lot of heralding failures and shortfalls. Yea, there exist discussion threads, like this one, where people do have conversations about goings on in their cities, and of course not all of the conversations sunshine and rainbows. But, what most of those discussions include are a reasonable amount of mutual respect, which seems to be something that you are sorely lacking.

[jackofalltrades]

Originally Posted by Tourian

That's a huge stretch and merely you just tying two random stats together to prove a weak premise. There are places that exist with vibrancy and young pro culture that still don't have a lot of Rolls and Bentleys around.



By shallow people sure. The area that store is located in generally determines that. You can see high dollar cars at Wal-Mart on 280 that you won't see in Roebuck. People with money sometimes drive cheap cars. Lots of professional people can't afford a Rolls or a Bentley, those are extremely expensive vehicles generally for the 1% of the 1%.



Impossible to have an honest discussion with a blatant trolls who move goal posts around, build strawmen, fabricate quotes, tie vague personal hang ups to larger issues as "proof" of their conclusions and get butthurt when someone pokes holes in their weak "argument."

SMH. I wonder if other cities have as many boosters on their forums. Really though, are yall paid by the city? Work for the city and just huge fanboys or what?

[SpawnOfVulcan]

Originally Posted by jackofalltrades

SMH. I wonder if other cities have as many boosters on their forums. Really though, are yall paid by the city? Work for the city and just huge fanboys or what?

Jeezus, did the city abuse you when you were a child? You seem to be completely incapable of understanding what anyone is saying.

Everyone, I'm gonna keep this forum at arms length until troll goes back to whatever place it came from... probably the 5th Ave tunnel.