By David Sher
Birmingham’s future depends on doing something unique—a real competitive advantage.
We have that competitive advantage, but when it’s promoted, it becomes surprisingly polarizing.
Continue reading Birmingham Cringes, Montgomery Counts the Money
By Doug Martinson
Editor’s note: This column appeared recently in the Huntsville Real-Time News . I thought people in Birmingham might be interested in what leaders in Huntsville are saying about their city and ours.
I recently went to a wedding in Greenville, SC, which is a very well planned and beautiful city and one that Huntsville leaders went to years ago to get ideas of how to make Huntsville a better place. Continue reading Alabama Cities Should Follow the Lead of This South Carolina City
By Emily Wykle
For a long time, ambitious entrepreneurs in Alabama learned the same lesson early: if you wanted to build something big, you would probably have to leave. That belief shaped more than their careers.
It shaped where companies were headquartered, where jobs landed and where economic opportunity bloomed. Continue reading The Myth That’s Been Holding Birmingham and Alabama Back — Why It’s Finally Dying
By David Sher
I’m dumbfounded.
I’ve written and hosted ComebackTown columns for 14 years on how Birmingham might do better.
Fourteen years of hoping, pushing, and prodding. And then the world turns upside down. Continue reading Time to Pay Close Attention to Birmingham Mayor Randall Woodfin
By Scott Gelber
For nearly 50 years, New York wasn’t just where I lived. It shaped how I saw the world.
I spent 25 of those years working in Manhattan. If you’ve ever worked there, you know the rhythm.
Everything moves fast. Continue reading A New Yorker and The Birmingham he Never Saw Coming
By David Sher
I recently met with the CEO of a large private company to discuss how greater Birmingham might progress. He’s a well-known name from a well-known firm.
He was totally engaged in our conversation. He took copious notes and asked thoughtful questions about what I presented. Continue reading Big Problem: Moneyed People in the Suburbs Love Birmingham Too Much
By Robert Watkins
News Flash! If you are a dog or cat and can choose your birth state, you might want to avoid Alabama — no matter how cutely you wag your tail, shake hands with your paw, or roll over on command.
Alabama has a problem that most people don’t know about. Continue reading Alabama Quietly Killing Thousands of Dogs and Cats. Here’s What We’re Doing in Birmingham to Save Them
Editor’s note: I don’t do this often. But when we lost J. Mason Davis on April 24, I knew I had to bring back one of the most remarkable pieces ever published on ComebackTown — because it deserves to be read again, and because the man who wrote it deserves to be remembered.
Read it as a tribute to a man who wasn’t afraid to tell the truth — and as a reminder that honest voices, once gone, leave a silence that’s hard to fill. Continue reading Alabama Tried to get Rid of this Birmingham Man, It Didn’t Work
By David Sher
Let me get this out of the way: Some people are going to accuse me of being a bit too optimistic.
That is all okay.
A dose of optimism is likely what we need. Continue reading Birmingham Doing What No One Thought Possible
By David Sher
I’m writing this column for one reason.
This piece is for the folks who take Birmingham’s strengths for granted and feel we’re falling behind Huntsville. Continue reading You and Your Family May Not Need Birmingham until You Do