12 minute read
NEWS
By Sam Prickett
Late last year, Colliers International and Arlington Properties conducted a series of listening sessions around Homewood about the future of the Brookwood Village Mall. The two companies had just signed a contract to redevelop the flagging mall but wanted to get feedback from the community before moving forward.
Colliers and Arlington already had some idea of what they wanted to do with the property, of course, reimagining Brookwood Village as a multi-use development including retail, restaurants, high-end apartments, office spaces, a luxury hotel and a conference center.
Shopping malls have been on the decline for years – Brookwood Village is almost half-empty – and a nationwide pandemic didn’t help things.
“I think COVID has accelerated what’s happening nationwide to malls, and I think it’s maybe pushed the timeline for this project maybe sooner than it otherwise would have been,” said Mark Stuermann, executive vice president of Arlington Properties’ development division. “But our vision for it hasn’t really changed.”
That vision is to do away with most of the traditional mall structure and replace it with something that feels more like a downtown promenade. Stuermann said he hopes the finished development will feel like a three- or four-block stretch of Greenville, South Carolina, “a walkable, mixed-use place where people live, work and interact,” he said.
Though most of the current mall will be demolished, the parking decks will remain intact underneath new residential structures. There’s a large, open-air event plaza planned for the center of the development, with other, smaller green spaces dotted throughout the property.
“We picture it being like a living, breathing place … . That activity, that liveliness, will draw people in and make it really feel like the destination it needs to be. We picture having a brewpub, live music, farmer’s markets,” Stuermann said. “In the winter, I’d like to have a temporary ice skating rink. We’d love for it to be as active of a place as you could think of.”
That plan largely lined up with what the community wanted, Stuermann said.
“People are really passionate about more open space and parks, and we have some of that contemplated in our plan.”
Organizations representing Shades Creek and Jemison Park, both of which neighbor the mall, also reached out.
“There are a lot of stakeholders in our community that have a vision for what Shades Creek can be,” Stuermann said. “If you think about Shades Creek, in front of Brookwood is the only place where it’s not a natural creek. If you go past Highway 280 to Jemison Park, it’s a meandering creek. And once you get past Target (on the other side of Brookwood Mall) it takes on that character too. I don’t know all that we can do, but I do know it can be improved, and I think there are a lot of people in the community (who) have a passion for it.”
Stuermann said he hopes to have a rezoning plan submitted to the city of Homewood by early next month. Once that’s approved and construction begins, the project will take between 18 months and two years to complete.
Construction will displace some of the current tenants, though Stuermann said he hopes they’ll be able to return once the redevelopment is finished.
“There’s certainly a period of time where it will be under construction and there’s not really going to be any space to occupy,” he said. “The retail parcels along Brookwood Village Lane, those will remain, and we’d love for those businesses to stay open, but there will be a lot of construction and traffic.”
Developers Envision a New Brookwood Village
MARK STUERMANN, EXECUTIVE VICE PRESIDENT OF ARLINGTON PROPERTIES
Connections to the Past
Stuermann said the community listening sessions highlighted to him how important the Brookwood mall is to people in Homewood and the surrounding areas.
“I would say that people are passionate about Brookwood,” he said. “I heard so many great stories from people about their experiences growing up there, going there.
“We got one email from a lady who said she truly grew up at Brookwood. Her father was the first manager of the property, and so she spent a bunch of time in his office at the mall, which is really neat. … I’ve even gotten funny stories about how there was an Applebee’s inside the mall, and if you could get seating in the atrium outside the restaurant, that was the thing to do.”
Though plans are now moving forward, developers still welcome community feedback at brookwoodvillagevision.com.
“We want this to be a place that the community supports and wants to be there,” Stuermann said. “We’re open for feedback.”
By Sam Prickett
Homewood’s much-anticipated Valley Hotel will be opening in a few weeks, and it will bring with it a restaurant, a bar and a coffee shop.
The Valley Hotel has been in development since 2016, when Capstone Companies founder Michael Mouron bought the property that formerly housed Hatfield Auto and Little Professor Bookstore. A year later, it was announced that the Valley Hotel would be part of Hilton’s Curio Collection, an upscale brand with more than 30 locations worldwide.
After lengthy negotiations with the city of Homewood, construction got underway in 2019, and now the hotel is nearly prepared to open its doors — and the doors of its three new eateries.
The ground-floor restaurant, Ironwood Kitchen + Cocktails, will connect the Valley Hotel with the rest of downtown Homewood, while the second-story Terrace Bar will overlook the 18th Street corridor. Valley Coffee Co., a smaller bistro, will be inside, near the hotel’s front desk.
Danny Hiatt, the hotel’s regional director and general manager, said he hopes the new food and beverage venues will generate a large local following and “add a lot of charm and quaintness to the Homewood community.”
The branding for Ironwood draws on the history of the area.
“Really, Birmingham was forged by fire and the city was fueled by a robust coal and iron industry,” Hiatt said. “We wanted to speak to the origins and roots of Birmingham, and we really looked at developing a menu that honors those elements.”
Ironwood will be led by Doug Zuk, a chef with years of experience in the food industry, particularly in Las Vegas, where he worked at Top Chef judge Tom Colicchio’s Craftsteak restaurant at the MGM Grand.
“He was kind of a pioneer in the Vegas industry for a while,” Hiatt said, “but he’s got ties to Birmingham and family here. He’s originally a Southern boy at heart, and he’s just so excited to really bring these offerings and these flavors to Birmingham.”
The menu will feature “honest food,” Hiatt said, which he described as “reimagined Southern comfort staples (and) an elevated cuisine.” One specialty, for example, will be grouper and grits, which Hiatt called “kind of a play on shrimp and grits with cheddar grit cakes and Conecuh sausage.”
Inside, Ironwood will have a “cozy” atmosphere, with dining nooks and castiron finishes. The restaurant also will feature a large outdoor patio abutting 18th Street, which Hiatt anticipates “will be very popular.”
Above Ironwood is the Terrace, a second-story bar overlooking the corner of 18th Street and 28th Avenue. That bar also will feature indoor and outdoor seating areas with a patio that Hiatt anticipates “will be the place to be.”
“We’re excited about the indoor/outdoor component of the Terrace Bar,” he said. “It can be closed off separately for separate events, but it’s all beautiful floor-to-ceiling windows. It has a lot of incoming light right there at the corner, so we think that will be a very high-energy location for us.”
The Terrace Bar will serve cocktails and small plates; it also will be adjacent to the Red Mountain Ballroom, a second-story venue inside the hotel that will offer 7,000 square feet of meeting space.
“It’s a beautiful, gorgeous ballroom, and we think it will be the ideal setting for weddings and social events as well as corporate meetings,” Hiatt said, noting that the venue already has received a slew of wedding inquiries.
Also inside the hotel is the Valley Coffee Co., a lobby-level bistro that will feature upscale coffee offerings. In the morning, the bistro will offer pastries and savory items; in the afternoon, its menu will expand to include a variety of gourmet salads and sandwiches.
Hiatt also highlighted a small courtyard area outside the bistro, which he said “has a really beautiful feel with a lot of foliage” and will feature customer seating. “It’s kind of an escape into its own little setting,” he said.
The prospect of launching three new eateries – along with a new hotel – during a pandemic can be “a little daunting,” Hiatt admitted, but he pointed to the safety protocols mandated by Hilton as a reassurance.
“We take COVID very seriously, and we’ll be following all the CDC guidelines with social distancing and masks required,” Hiatt said. “Hilton is a world-class leader in sanitation, and they’ve taken the lead in the hotel world with a couple of programs, like CleanStay for the guest rooms and EventReady for the event spaces. We just want everyone to feel very comfortable and safe, and there’s a lot of protocols we follow with very detailed cleaning and sanitation.
“We don’t want to scare anyone away. We want them to feel comfortable and relaxed and (as though they are) coming into an environment that’s really going to be razor-sharp as it relates to sanitation.”
The opening date for the development has not been set. To keep up with progress and find more information on the Valley Hotel, Ironwood, Terrace Bar and Valley Coffee Co., visit valleyhotelbirmingham.com.
New Valley Hotel Includes Three Eateries
Ironwood Kitchen + Cocktails, Terrace Bar, Valley Coffee Co., are located inside the new Valley Hotel. Journal photo by Jordan Wald
Homewood and Hoover Libraries Named National Stars
The Hoover and Homewood public libraries both have been named to the 2020 Star Libraries list by the Library Journal.
Only six libraries in the state, 11 in the Southeast and 262 in the country made the list, out of 5,608 qualified libraries nationwide.
Hoover made the list among libraries in the $5 million to $9.9 million budget range. Homewood is on the list for libraries in the $1 million to $4.9 million budget range.
This is the 13th year the Library Journal has awarded Star Library ratings. The awardees are judged on seven measurements: physical circulation, circulation of electronic materials, retrieval of electronic information, library visits, program attendance, internet use and Wi-Fi sessions.
“It’s been a challenging year. So to be recognized for doing something right is extra special during this time,” said Hoover Public Library Director, Amanda Borden.
“Every day, patrons tell us what the library means to them. But to be recognized nationally is a special honor. We could not do it without the financial support from the city and the citizens using our services to suit their lifestyle. It’s because of that relationship and working together that we’re about to do something bright for the community.” —Virginia Martin
Homewood Chamber Taps Four Businesses for 2020 Awards
The Homewood Chamber of Commerce wrapped up 2020 by handing out awards to four local companies for their performance and service last year.
Business of the Year awards were given to two businesses – Jack’s Family Restaurants, a fast-food chain that originated in Homewood in 1960 and has since spread to 182 locations across the Southeast, and wireless communications carrier C Spire.
For the Rising Star Award, which is given to a business less than two years old, the chamber named Big Spoon Creamery, an ice cream shop that opened its first Homewood location in February 2019.
The Community Patriot Award, which goes to a business that has “demonstrated exemplary community service,” was awarded to Classic Wine Company, a staple of the Homewood Community since 1988.
During its final meeting of the year, a virtual luncheon Dec. 15, the chamber also changed board leadership. The chamber’s 2020 president, Jodi Newton of Samford University, handed over the gavel to her successor, the Welch Group’s Matthew Savela, who previously had served as the chamber’s treasurer.
The chamber’s next virtual luncheon will be Jan. 19 and will include a State of the City address from newly elected Mayor Patrick McClusky. For more information, visit homewoodchamber. org. —Sam Prickett
JLB Hosts Virtual Anti-Human Trafficking Event Series
The Junior League of Birmingham is hosting several virtual events statewide throughout January, which is designated as Anti-Human Trafficking Awareness Month.
The “Human Trafficking Awareness: What You Need to Know to Help End it Now” series will include three virtual events. The series is being sponsored in partnership with chapters in AnnistonCalhoun, Mobile, Montgomery and the Shoals and presented by Regions.
According to a release, the purpose of the series is “to promote awareness of the prominent issue and debunk common myths surrounding it.”
The first installment, “Human Trafficking 101,” was presented Jan. 7. Upcoming installments are “Social Media Predators: What Parents Need to Know About Online Human Traffickers,” to be presented by Bark on Jan. 19; and a panel discussion “Truckers Against Trafficking and the Junior League of Birmingham Present: Be the Voice to Help End Human Trafficking,” on Jan. 26.
“Human trafficking is largely successful because of community apathy and denial of its existence,” said Julia Meyers, chairwoman of the JLB’s Anti-Human Trafficking Committee. “That doesn’t mean it isn’t happening right under our noses – and on an enormous scale. With I-20 and I-65 both major human trafficking corridors running through the Birmingham metro area, this issue should hit home with those that live, work and play in or near Birmingham.”
According to league officials, human trafficking is listed as the second-largest, fastest-growing enterprise in the world and occurs in every U.S. state on a daily basis.
The Department of Homeland Security estimates the commercial sex industry generates $110 million each year in the Birmingham metro area, the league notes. This does not include illegal activity that occurs in massage parlors or strip clubs, nor does it include child trafficking, which is more difficult to quantify.
“Ending human trafficking will require working together on a state and communitywide response, and the Junior League of Birmingham is committed to bringing awareness to this issue in any and every way possible,” said Toni Leeth, JLB president.
To register for the events, visit jlbawareness.swell.gives. — Emily Williams-Robertshaw
Antiques • Vintage Industrial New Arrivals! — SMALL CHANGE —
BIG To: Mike From: Over The Mountain Journal, PHONE: 205-823-9646 FAX: 205-824-1246 Date: Oct. 11, 2016 This is your AD PrOOF from the OvEr THE MOuNTAiN JOurNAl for the Oct. 20, 2016 issue. Please fax approval or changes to 824-1246. Please make sure all information is correct, including address and phone number! Please initial and fax back within 24 hours.
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