The words Corridor Improvement Authority are about to become an important part of the development lexicon in Birmingham. City officials are looking to establishing one in the city’s Triangle District to help fund public infrastructure improvements.
The authority would take tax revenue generated by improved land, such as a parking lot developed into a mixed-use building, and let developers use it to make public infrastructure improvements to their projects. Those improvements could include things like new streetscapes.
"Those may include at some point in the future, a parking structure," says Jana Ecker, planning director for the city of Birmingham. "Obviously one of our biggest needs is parking so that would be one of our first goals."
The Triangle District consists of the area bounded by Woodward Avenue, Adams Road and Maple Road (just east of downtown). It is experiencing development pressure, prompting the City Commission to approve the Triangle District plan. The new master plan calls for developing surface parking lots and underutilized lots into dense, urban structures that will create a vibrant, pedestrian-friendly and mixed-use district.
The city will hold a public hearing on establishing the authority on Aug. 25. If everything goes as planned it could be up and running by next spring.
Source: Jana Ecker, planning director for the city of Birmingham
Writer: Jon Zemke
Enjoy this story?
Sign up for free solutions-based reporting in your inbox each week.