Economy
Small Banks Continue Move to Birmingham
Birmingham’s banking sector has seen smaller banks entering the market hoping to latch onto growth in the state’s biggest metro area. So far in 2016, that trend is not slowing. We start there in this week’s Magic City Marketplace. The Birmingham Business Journal's Ty West also explains how the healthcare community is reacting to a General Fund budget Alabama's Medicaid commissioner says is below what's needed to maintain services.
Eva Hardy Jones: Powell School’s Legendary Principal
Eva Hardy Jones became principal of Powell School in 1976. Around this time, the building was added to the National Register of Historic Places, but it and its students were in need.
Nevada Company Interested in Unfinished Alabama Nuclear Plant
A Nevada company says it wants to buy an unfinished nuclear power plant in northeast Alabama.
Congestion Not Likely to Improve Around Birmingham
Anyone who commutes along I-65 or U.S. 280 around Birmingham, knows those highways can get congested. But those are far from the only roadways feeling pressure. Backups are annoying and have real costs.Birmingham Birmingham Business Journal editor Ty West talks about that in this week’s Magic City Marketplace. He also explains why retail has been lagging in downtown Birmingham's revival.
MAP: Where Are Birmingham’s Vacant School Buildings?
WBHM's Mary Scott Hodgin recently reported on surplus property owned by Birmingham City Schools. Vacant schools are a common sight throughout Birmingham. The buildings symbolize decades of population decline and budget cuts. As Birmingham's city center and interest in historic properties grows, many hope these large structures will be revitalized. We've created a map showing where these empty schools are located. Take a look.
Federal Lawsuit Highlights Conflict Between State and Local Government
Alabama doesn’t have a minimum wage law. The state uses the federal rate of $7.25. Earlier this year, the Birmingham City Council tried to increase the city’s minimum wage, but we overridden by a bill Governor Robert Bentley signed into law inFebruary. The bill, originally flied by Mountain Brook Republican state Rep. David Faulkner, said only the state can set the minimum wage.
Birmingham Ranks Poorly on Long-Term Small Business Growth
Birmingham has a lot to offer young companies, but the city is lacking when it comes to sustaining small businesses in the long term. That’s according to a new study by American City Business Journals. They measured the nation’s largest metro areas for small business vitality, and Birmingham ranked 82nd out of more than 100 metro areas.
State’s Historic Tax Credit Expires this Month
From the Lyric Theater in downtown Birmingham to the Howell School in Dothan, a number of renovations have been supported by the state’s historic tax credit. It offered developers financial incentives to take on projects that might have come with big risks. But the bill to renew those tax credits has died this legislative session, and the tax will expire this month.
Birmingham Housing Market Tilts to Sellers
The housing market is cyclical as are so many things in business. After a housing-led recession and recovery, the Birmingham housing market is becoming a sellers market with far more demand than homes to go around. But the adage "location, location, location" still applies. Birmingham Business Journal editor Ty West explains in this week's Magic City Marketplace.
Investment in Alabama Doubled in 2015, Report Finds
A report out today from state officials shows Alabama attracted more than $7 billion in investments and added nearly 20,000 new jobs last year.
Raising Poultry Increasingly a “Raw Deal” for Alabama Farmers
Poultry production has risen in the past several decades. It's now a more than $45 billion industry in the U.S. Alabama is located in the heart of what’s considered the agricultural “chicken belt” of America. In 2013, Alabama farms produced roughly 1 billion chickens. While that may make it sound like the state's poultry farming economy is healthy, farmers tell a different story. Every one of Alabama’s chickens is produced by contract famers, and some of these farmers tell the weekly newspaper WELD that they’re getting a raw deal.
Hospitals see Changes in Alabama’s Certificate of Need Process
If you don't work in the healthcare industry, you might not be familiar with Alabama's Certificate of Need process. It's bureaucratic, often with mounds of paperwork and legal fees, but it determines what healthcare facilities get built in the state. And in some cases, which ones are blocked. We hear about the process and some changes in this week's Magic City Marketplace.
Alabama Women Paid Significantly Less than Men
A new study finds that women in Alabama are paid significantly less than men.
AG Strange: New EPA Rule Would Hurt Alabama’s Racing Economy
Alabama is joining eight other states petitioning the federal government to drop a proposal banning the modification of street vehicles into off-road race cars. Attorney General Luther Strange announced he is calling on the Environmental Protection Agency to drop a proposed change to the Clean Air Act. The new rule would forbid the modification of […]
What the Bentley Scandal Means for Economic Development
The scandal surrounding Governor Robert Bentley’s alleged affair with a former top advisor has grabbed attention from CNN to the New York Times to the Washington Post. With that national media attention, some Bentley opponents in the legislature have suggested his troubles have hurt the state’s economic development efforts. We explore that in this week’s Magic City Marketplace.
Outlook on Alabama’s Economy Splits from National Picture
The U.S economy has been growing for almost seven years and analysts are debating when it will inevitably return to recession. One report from the bank BBVA Compass says it probably won't happen in 2016, but its prediction about Alabama's economy is less upbeat. We explain in this week's Magic City Marketplace.
Fiber Internet Coming to Birmingham
For many workplaces having a fast Internet connection is critical. That’s why a recent announcement that fiber Internet would be coming to the Birmingham area has economic development leaders excited. We talk about it in this week’s Magic City Marketplace.
Birmingham Rolls Out its Land Bank
The abundance of dilapidated and abandoned properties around Birmingham is something city leaders have struggled to deal with. A new tool to attack the problem is getting off the ground. It’s called a land bank. We talk about it in this week’s Magic City Marketplace.
UAB Minimum Wage Increase Goes Into Effect This Weekend
Alabama’s largest employer is increasing its minimum wage to $11 an hour, officials say. The decision was made before a contentious minimum wage fight between city and state lawmakers.
Community Banks Increase Lending to Small Business
We sort of know the broad outlines of starting a business. You have an idea, find an investor or lender for funding, then go at it. Around Birmingham community banks are increasingly getting in on that small business lending action. That's where we start the conversation in this week’s Magic City Marketplace.
UAB — Going More Dense and Vertical
UAB has been jokingly referred to as the university that ate Birmingham because of the steady growth its campus has seen through the decades. It’s an anchor of the region’s economy and a new master plan outlines where university leaders want to take Birmingham’s largest employer. We talk about it in this week's Magic City Marketplace. Birmingham Business Journal editor Ty West also discusses plans for development around Birmingham's CrossPlex and why lower oil prices are bad news for banks.
Analysis Shows Great Voting Divide in Jefferson County, A Win for Ben Carson
Less than half of Jefferson County's 411,838 registered voters went to the polls on Tuesday. A total of 82,928 voted in the Democratic Primary and 93,985 voted in the Republican Primary.
Metro Birmingham’s Growth Hotspots
The Birmingham metro area has seen steady, albeit modest population growth since the great recession. However, that growth though isn’t even with some communities seeing growth rates far higher. We talk about this week’s Magic City Marketplace.
Shelby County Residents to Vote on Sunday Alcohol Sales
During Tuesday’s primaries residents of Shelby County will vote on whether to allow alcohol to be sold on Sundays.
Priming the Pipeline for STEM in the South: Student Incentives in Alabama
Given thousands of related job openings but only hundreds of computer science college graduates, Alabama is trying to ramp up its computer science education. That includes a new policy allowing those classes to count toward core math graduation requirements. WBHM's Dan Carsen concludes the Southern Education Desk series "Priming the Pipeline for STEM in the South" with a visit to a Birmingham-area class that's leading the way.
Birmingham City Council Strikes Back Over Minimum Wage Bill
The Birmingham City Council is once again trying move up the effective date of its minimum wage increase. This is in response to the fast tracked steps the State Legislature is taking to block this action. The council could vote to move up the effective date from March 1 to Wednesday, February 24. Republican Representative […]
Business Community Watching Bills in the Alabama Legislature
With the Alabama legislative session in full swing, the business community has a number of bills they’re watching closely. These bills could have a significant effect on companies around Birmingham. We highlight a few of them in this week's Magic City Marketplace.
Infamous West End Property Set for Demolition
A blighted property in West End that city officials say has been a scar on that area for too long is being demolished. Birmingham city leaders announced today that demolition of Larkway Gardens begins tomorrow morning, Wednesday, February 17, at 9 a.m. following asbestos removal. In an interview with WBHM last year, Councilwoman Sheila Tyson […]
Why this Coal Industry Downturn may be Different
Alabama’s coal industry has faced its ups and downs through the decades. It’s clearly down now. Walter Energy, for instance, is embroiled in bankruptcy. While the industry has bounced back before, this time might be different. That’s where we start this week’s Magic City Marketplace.
Alabama in Need of Road Repairs to Spur Economic Development
A report out this week from a Washington think tank outlines the top transportation maintenance projects it says are needed to improve economic growth in Alabama.
Blueprint Birmingham and Beyond
More than five years after the Birmingham Business Alliance launched Blueprint Birmingham, the BBA is working towards a new strategic plan, called Blueprint 20/20. For more on this and other stories, WBHM's Rachel Osier Lindley spoke to Nick Patterson, editor of the weekly newspaper WELD. Patterson joins WBHM most Thursdays during All Things Considered.
The Low Price and High Cost of Heroin
Heroin overdose deaths are on the rise nationally. In Jefferson County, deaths increased by more than 140 percent in 2014. The numbers were shocking: Heroin caused or contributed to 144 deaths in 2014. Area law enforcement responded by increasing efforts to get traffickers and drugs off the streets, especially in Birmingham.
