By David Sher
I know I’m going to take some flak.
When I publish columns about how our region would prosper with local government consolidation or collaboration, I brace myself for negative comments from folks who think their suburb is superior to Birmingham and imply we’d all be better off if Birmingham didn’t exist. Continue reading Without Birmingham there is no Homewood
By David Sher
I don’t get the logic.
I read the headlines and excuses, but they make no sense.
Read this recent headline.
“Pelham raises sales tax for the first time since 2013” Continue reading Pelham, Vestavia Hills, Mountain Brook flimsy excuse to raise taxes
Today’s guest columnist is Jeffrey Bayer.
Last week, after a successful annexation vote, Mayor Sandy Stimson of Mobile proudly proclaimed, “We’re bigger than Birmingham!”
Up until recently Birmingham was concerned about falling behind Huntsville.
Now we’ve fallen behind, not only Huntsville, but also Montgomery and Mobile. Continue reading Birmingham doesn’t need Mtn. Brook, Vestavia, or Hoover to grow
Today’s guest columnist is Dick Pizitz.
In 1969, a future mayor of Birmingham, David Vann, recruited a few people to initiate a quiet campaign to consolidate all of the municipalities and unincorporated areas of Jefferson County into a single combined metropolitan government. Continue reading How Birmingham came within one vote of becoming a major U.S. city
By David Sher
According to Birmingham Lede “Jefferson County lost nearly 4,600 people between 2021-2022.
Even the Birmingham Hoover Metropolitan area lost population.
How’s it possible to be located in the center of the Sunbelt, the fastest growing region in the U.S. and be shrinking? Continue reading The next logical step for our Birmingham region
By David Sher
It’s really frustrating.
I feel like I’m continually hitting my head against a wall.
Internet companies keep publishing negative city rankings with Birmingham at or near the top. Continue reading If you listen to online rankings Birmingham, its suburbs are lonely, fat, and unhappy
Today’s guest columnist is Christopher Tyler Burks.
It seems to me that David Sher has done us all a great service by publishing ComebackTown.com.
While there is excellent coverage of regional issues across our media, this site has become the de facto beat reporter for discussions of regional cooperation in Greater Birmingham. Continue reading Is metro Birmingham ready for regional governance?
By David Sher
On November 18, Donald Watkins published a column on his website entitled, “Birmingham is Dying.”
I immediately began getting e-mails from ComebackTown readers looking for my reaction. Continue reading Birmingham is dying—a rebuttal to an editorial attacking black elected officials
Brenda Starnes is guest columnist today.
I have the unique experience of having lived and worked in Nashville, Charlotte, and Birmingham.
I love Birmingham—that’s why I moved back—but Nashville and Charlotte have one big advantage over Birmingham. Continue reading Can Birmingham put Humpty Dumpty back together again?
By David Sher
Most folks’ first impression of Birmingham won’t be from driving to town on I-65.
Nor arriving at our Amtrak station, or at the Birmingham-Shuttlesworth International Airport.
It will likely be from a simple Google search.
A Google search of Birmingham, however, can be quite embarrassing. Continue reading How Google is sabotaging Birmingham