Death at Building Trades Towers: Southside Apartment Building’s Troubled Past

 ========= Old Image Removed =========Array
(
    [_wp_attached_file] => Array
        (
            [0] => 2015/11/Trades-Tower-Fire.jpeg
        )

    [_wp_attachment_metadata] => Array
        (
            [0] => a:5:{s:5:"width";i:640;s:6:"height";i:384;s:4:"file";s:30:"2015/11/Trades-Tower-Fire.jpeg";s:5:"sizes";a:10:{s:6:"medium";a:4:{s:4:"file";s:30:"Trades-Tower-Fire-336x202.jpeg";s:5:"width";i:336;s:6:"height";i:202;s:9:"mime-type";s:10:"image/jpeg";}s:9:"thumbnail";a:4:{s:4:"file";s:30:"Trades-Tower-Fire-140x140.jpeg";s:5:"width";i:140;s:6:"height";i:140;s:9:"mime-type";s:10:"image/jpeg";}s:9:"wbhm-icon";a:4:{s:4:"file";s:28:"Trades-Tower-Fire-80x80.jpeg";s:5:"width";i:80;s:6:"height";i:80;s:9:"mime-type";s:10:"image/jpeg";}s:13:"wbhm-featured";a:4:{s:4:"file";s:30:"Trades-Tower-Fire-600x338.jpeg";s:5:"width";i:600;s:6:"height";i:338;s:9:"mime-type";s:10:"image/jpeg";}s:20:"wbhm-featured-square";a:4:{s:4:"file";s:30:"Trades-Tower-Fire-600x384.jpeg";s:5:"width";i:600;s:6:"height";i:384;s:9:"mime-type";s:10:"image/jpeg";}s:18:"wbhm-featured-home";a:4:{s:4:"file";s:30:"Trades-Tower-Fire-518x311.jpeg";s:5:"width";i:518;s:6:"height";i:311;s:9:"mime-type";s:10:"image/jpeg";}s:22:"wbhm-featured-carousel";a:4:{s:4:"file";s:30:"Trades-Tower-Fire-442x265.jpeg";s:5:"width";i:442;s:6:"height";i:265;s:9:"mime-type";s:10:"image/jpeg";}s:28:"ab-block-post-grid-landscape";a:4:{s:4:"file";s:30:"Trades-Tower-Fire-600x384.jpeg";s:5:"width";i:600;s:6:"height";i:384;s:9:"mime-type";s:10:"image/jpeg";}s:25:"ab-block-post-grid-square";a:4:{s:4:"file";s:30:"Trades-Tower-Fire-600x384.jpeg";s:5:"width";i:600;s:6:"height";i:384;s:9:"mime-type";s:10:"image/jpeg";}s:14:"post-thumbnail";a:4:{s:4:"file";s:30:"Trades-Tower-Fire-125x125.jpeg";s:5:"width";i:125;s:6:"height";i:125;s:9:"mime-type";s:10:"image/jpeg";}}s:10:"image_meta";a:12:{s:8:"aperture";s:1:"0";s:6:"credit";s:0:"";s:6:"camera";s:0:"";s:7:"caption";s:0:"";s:17:"created_timestamp";s:1:"0";s:9:"copyright";s:0:"";s:12:"focal_length";s:1:"0";s:3:"iso";s:1:"0";s:13:"shutter_speed";s:1:"0";s:5:"title";s:0:"";s:11:"orientation";s:1:"0";s:8:"keywords";a:0:{}}}
        )

    [_media_credit] => Array
        (
            [0] => Esther Ciammachilli
        )

    [_navis_media_credit_org] => Array
        (
            [0] => WBHM
        )

    [_navis_media_can_distribute] => Array
        (
            [0] => 
        )

    [_imagify_optimization_level] => Array
        (
            [0] => 1
        )

    [_imagify_data] => Array
        (
            [0] => a:2:{s:5:"stats";a:3:{s:13:"original_size";i:156280;s:14:"optimized_size";i:112778;s:7:"percent";d:27.84;}s:5:"sizes";a:9:{s:4:"full";a:5:{s:7:"success";b:1;s:8:"file_url";s:58:"https://news.wbhm.org/media/2015/11/Trades-Tower-Fire.jpeg";s:13:"original_size";i:152562;s:14:"optimized_size";i:109093;s:7:"percent";d:28.489999999999998;}s:9:"thumbnail";a:2:{s:7:"success";b:0;s:5:"error";s:77:"WELL DONE. This image is already compressed, no further compression required.";}s:6:"medium";a:2:{s:7:"success";b:0;s:5:"error";s:77:"WELL DONE. This image is already compressed, no further compression required.";}s:9:"wbhm-icon";a:5:{s:7:"success";b:1;s:8:"file_url";s:64:"https://news.wbhm.org/media/2015/11/Trades-Tower-Fire-80x80.jpeg";s:13:"original_size";i:3718;s:14:"optimized_size";i:3685;s:7:"percent";d:0.89000000000000001;}s:13:"wbhm-featured";a:2:{s:7:"success";b:0;s:5:"error";s:77:"WELL DONE. This image is already compressed, no further compression required.";}s:20:"wbhm-featured-square";a:2:{s:7:"success";b:0;s:5:"error";s:77:"WELL DONE. This image is already compressed, no further compression required.";}s:18:"wbhm-featured-home";a:2:{s:7:"success";b:0;s:5:"error";s:77:"WELL DONE. This image is already compressed, no further compression required.";}s:22:"wbhm-featured-carousel";a:2:{s:7:"success";b:0;s:5:"error";s:77:"WELL DONE. This image is already compressed, no further compression required.";}s:14:"post-thumbnail";a:2:{s:7:"success";b:0;s:5:"error";s:77:"WELL DONE. This image is already compressed, no further compression required.";}}}
        )

    [_imagify_status] => Array
        (
            [0] => success
        )

)
1653749169 
1452174800

The Birmingham Building Trades Towers Southside is still vacant after a fire forced the elderly residents, most of the poor, from their homes in October. Since this incident, Al.com’s Amy Yurkanin has uncovered disturbing information about the property, past and current tenants and its elusive owner who lives out of state.

 

Vijay Iyer’s art of listening

The MacArthur fellow sits down with Lara Downes at the Big Ears Festival to discuss the creative states of improvising, composing and collaborating.

Word of the Week: How ‘pride’ shifted from vice to a symbol of LGBTQ empowerment

The word pride has shifted over the millennia, from being first used to describe one of the seven deadly sins in Roman Catholic theology to becoming a global symbol for LGBTQ strength and empowerment.

In a county that backed Trump, people depend on Medicaid and are conflicted about cuts

Medicaid plays a vital role in many rural communities that favored President Donald Trump in the 2024 election. But residents still seem open to Republican plans to cut perceived waste in the program.

U.S. stops scheduling visa interviews for foreign students

The State Department has halted the scheduling of new visa interviews for foreign students while it prepares to expand the screening of their activity on social media, officials said.

Ex-police chief sentenced for rape and murder escaped prison disguised as prison guard

Law officers searched Arkansas' rugged Ozark Mountains for an ex-police chief and convicted killer who escaped prison by impersonating a guard and walking out through a gate a guard opened for him.

More Front Page Coverage