By David Sher
I’ve written about my favorite restaurant (Joy Young) and the old Terminal Train Station.
Never did I expect that I would have a soft-spot in my heart for a department store. Continue reading Soft-spot in my heart for an old Birmingham department store
Today’s guest columnist is Daniel Coleman.
After returning home full-time in 2017, I began to invest in local companies, where I got to know many of our city’s entrepreneurs.
I also started teaching finance at Birmingham-Southern College. At 53 years old, I realized that I was a little rusty. So I decided that it was time for me to learn to program in Python as well as learn actuarial math. In December 2018, I became the 16th president of Birmingham-Southern. Continue reading Birmingham secret weapon on west side hilltop
Today’s guest columnist is Marshall Malone.
When people discuss issues in the City of Birmingham, they may mention crime, education, or population loss.
However, there’s one issue most people may not be aware.
By David Sher
I never saw it coming.
According to recently released U.S. Bureau of Census population estimates the City of Birmingham is now the 3rd largest city in Alabama.
Until 2020 Birmingham was the largest city in the state. Continue reading Birmingham suburbs, are you nervous yet?
Today’s guest columnist is Alan Register.
The first World Games were played in Santa Clara, California in 1981.
They have not been played in America since.
Why then did they choose Birmingham?
And while we’re at it, why did the USFL select Birmingham?
There’s a simple answer, “a crazy idea” and “a winning streak.” Continue reading Why World Games chose Birmingham
Today’s guest columnist is Michael Calvert.
Predictions are always risky—especially about the future—but here are my predictions for downtown and the larger City Center.
In 1982, when I became CEO of Operation New Birmingham, REV’s predecessor, many people asked if I would bring back department stores and other retailers. I said downtown had evolved beyond its past as a retail center. Continue reading The transformation of downtown Birmingham
Today’s guest columnist is Daniel Coleman.
If economic growth comes from increased productivity, where does productivity come from? Capital and labor.
Capital can come from anywhere. Our issue in Birmingham is with “labor.” We have some great entrepreneurs here, with great ideas, who cannot find the workers they need to build and grow their companies. Continue reading Why Birmingham is not competitive
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
Today’s guest columnist is Terry Barr.
My brother asked me the other day if I remembered a place on Birmingham’s north side—1st Avenue, to be exact.
A place run by an old Bessemer guy, a friend of our mother, named Jim Anderson. His place was called: Seeds 4: Never Before Store. Continue reading Did you know Birmingham had a counterculture?
Today’s guest columnist is Hunter Williams.
Regional cooperation is the rising tide that will lift all ships in the Birmingham Metro area.
Unfortunately, our ships seem to have been stuck in the mud and the mire for quite some time. Continue reading Mistrust and inequity in Birmingham region