Category Archives: What’s great about Birmingham

Guest blogger, What's great about Birmingham

Birmingham: Silicon Valley ‘eat’ your heart out

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Joshua Jones
Joshua Jones, Managing Partner, StrategyWise, Birmingham’s fastest growing company

ComebackTown is published by David Sher to begin a discussion on a better Birmingham.

Today’s guest blogger is Joshua Jones.  If you’d like to be a guest blogger, please click here.

I’ve considered myself lucky to have spent most of my life traversing different cities, countries and cultures.

As a teenager, I started and sold a series of companies while exploring and working in Latin America. Later, my wife and I moved with our children to Japan, where I worked for a non-profit organization as their Asia Director. Continue reading Birmingham: Silicon Valley ‘eat’ your heart out →

Guest blogger, What's great about Birmingham

Birmingham: We can change the world

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Andrea L. Taylor, President and CEO Birmingham Civil Rights Institute
Andrea L. Taylor, President & CEO Birmingham Civil Rights Institute

ComebackTown is published by David Sher to begin a discussion on a better Birmingham.

Today’s guest blogger is Andrea Taylor..  If you’d like to be a guest blogger, please click here.

Wish me happy anniversary.  I’m celebrating my first year in Birmingham this month.

I’ve lived, worked, and traveled the U.S. and visited more than 70 countries on seven continents.

I see Birmingham through a unique lens and have been made to feel very welcome here.

If  asked about the history of Birmingham, you might tell me about Bull Connor, dogs and hoses, or the 1963 church bombing.

You might feel embarrassed about Birmingham and prefer the world forgets.

However, Birmingham’s tortuous history may be our biggest strength. Continue reading Birmingham: We can change the world →

Guest blogger, What's great about Birmingham

Mountain Brook gal: Achieving my dreams in downtown Birmingham

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Mimi Shannon
Mimi Shannon

ComebackTown is published by David Sher to begin a discussion on a better Birmingham.

Today’s guest blogger is Mimi Shannon.  If you’d like to be a guest blogger, please click here.

At this second, writing this article, I am sitting right next door to my apartment building on the brand new Rotary Trail.

The sun is setting, the “Magic City” sign is changing from red to white, there is a black family with their kids that are playing on an abstract cement seat, a preppy looking young white father and his two toddler children walking by, a young hippie couple admiring the trail, Zyp bikes flying above me on 1st Avenue South, and runners galore.

Continue reading Mountain Brook gal: Achieving my dreams in downtown Birmingham →

David Sher posts, Government structure, What's great about Birmingham

Birmingham slammed twice by national publication

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Creek along Jemison Train, Mountain Brook--calm and peaceful
Jemison Trail, Mountain Brook, located in our Birmingham region (no stress here) Photo by Barry Leff

Okay, we were embarrassed again…

…actually twice within two weeks by the same publication.

But I keep having this unsettling thought.

What if we live in one of the most livable cities in America, but these preposterous loony rankings convince us and people elsewhere that we’re a bunch of losers? Continue reading Birmingham slammed twice by national publication →

Guest blogger, What's great about Birmingham

How we slashed crime by 70% in downtown Birmingham

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Douglas Stewart,
Douglas Stewart

ComebackTown is published by David Sher to begin a discussion on a better Birmingham.

Today’s guest blogger is Douglas Stewart.  If you’d like to be a guest blogger, please click here.

The story you are about to hear is truly remarkable.

If an author had written it as a plot in a book, you wouldn’t have thought it possible.

For many years downtown Birmingham had the reputation of being unsafe.

Many people had given up on our downtown.  There were vacant buildings everywhere and businesses were rushing to the suburbs never to return. Continue reading How we slashed crime by 70% in downtown Birmingham →

Guest blogger, What's great about Birmingham

How Birmingham can become a major player on the world stage

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Brad Toland
Brad Toland

ComebackTown is published by David Sher to begin a discussion on a better Birmingham.

Today’s guest blogger is Brad Toland.  If you’d like to be a guest blogger, please click here.

It’s no secret that Birmingham has radically undergone a change of identity over the last several years.  New developments are happening so quickly that it can be hard to keep up with them all.

However, just like the fifteen year old that decides to attempt personal reinvention over the summer, sometimes the changes aren’t necessarily for the best in the long run, and need to be carefully considered with a focus on long term impacts. Continue reading How Birmingham can become a major player on the world stage →

David Sher posts, What's great about Birmingham

Something strange at Jefferson County Courthouse

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Jefferson County Courthouse
Jefferson County Courthouse

Oh no!

I had to go to the Jefferson County Courthouse to transact some business.

Based on my previous experiences, I would rather have a ‘root canal.’

The last time I went to the courthouse there were people lined up around the block. The hallways were filled with angry folks with tempers flaring.

Some citizens were compelled to hire surrogates to stand in line so they wouldn’t have to miss a day of work to transfer a license tag. Continue reading Something strange at Jefferson County Courthouse →

Guest blogger, What's great about Birmingham

The pain of losing a family treasure to an awakening Birmingham

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John W. Scott
John W. Scott

ComebackTown is published by David Sher to begin a discussion on a better Birmingham.

Today’s guest blogger is John Scott.  If you’d like to be a guest blogger, please click here.

It was a little slice of Birmingham cultural and architectural history.  If you’re of a certain age (that is, old) you may remember going to Waite’s after church on Sunday and having the egg salad sandwich or eclairs.

You may also remember the strange foods over in the small and dusty grocery section, my most clear memory being the tins of chocolate covered ants from South America.  Continue reading The pain of losing a family treasure to an awakening Birmingham →

Guest blogger, What's great about Birmingham

How Birmingham pulled off a billion dollar triumph!

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Tom Cosby
Tom Cosby
Barry Copeland
Barry Copeland

ComebackTown is published by David Sher to begin a discussion on a better Birmingham.

Today’s guest bloggers are Tom Cosby and Barry Copeland.  If you’d like to be a guest blogger, please click here.

Editor’s note:  We in Birmingham are often guilty of not celebrating our successes. It’s only appropriate that two of Birmingham’s greatest community leaders tell the story about how The Chamber of Commerce (BBA) along with ordinary citizens and political leaders pulled off one of Birmingham’s greatest successes. Continue reading How Birmingham pulled off a billion dollar triumph! →

Guest blogger, What's great about Birmingham

Would you buy a pickle from Vulcan?

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Darlene Negrotto, President & CEO of Vulcan Park Foundation
Darlene Negrotto, President & CEO of Vulcan Park Foundation

ComebackTown is published by David Sher to begin a discussion on a better Birmingham.

Today’s guest blogger is Darlene Negrotto.  If you’d like to be a guest blogger, please click here.

Take a moment to recall a fond memory of Vulcan.

Perhaps it was a childhood outing with family, or a romantic evening admiring the city lights.

Now think of the hundreds of thousands of others over the decades who have held similar heartfelt memories – and know that similar memories will continue to be made far into the future.

Vulcan is a common thread in our community.  He serves as an important link to our past, and to the generations yet to come. Continue reading Would you buy a pickle from Vulcan? →