Weekly newsletter: Woodlawn knows food, y’all (May 3rd, 2017)
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“You want a Coke?” “Yeah, what kinds do you have?”, Hill Yeah, Lookin Fresh, V + more
It’s May, friends! The flowers are blooming, and Birmingham is, too. See what’s up:
May 3rd.
Woodlawn Urban Farm
The month of May means Woodlawn High School’s Urban Farm is open for biz every Tuesday afternoon! A partnership between Jones valley Teaching Farm and Woodlawn High offers a two acre farm, state-of-the-art greenhouse, classroom, office, and produce processing and storage facilities all on the high school’s campus. Students enrolled in the credit-earning science class get hands-on project experience in agriculture and in the business side of farming. Grab some fresh veggies like kale, spinach, lettuce, turnips, mustard greens, collard greens, onion bunches and herb bunches. Check it out this whole month. Cash only!
I Love College
The Rotaract Club of Birmingham hosted the first ever College Signing Day last week at A.H. Parker High School as part of Rotaract’s continuing efforts to promote college education initiatives across the city. The ceremony honored the achievements of 62 college-bound Parker seniors and featured Teach For America’s Executive Director, Khadijah Abdullah, as the key note speaker. Congrats, seniors, and thanks, Rotaract of Birmingham!
Lookin’ Fresh, V
I literally said that when I saw his new coat on Sunday. For Vulcan’s upcoming 113th birthday, the management at Vulcan Park decided to treat him to a cast iron equivalent of a mani/pedi—a fresh paint job. Vulcan gets a new paint job every 7 years, so it’s like a lunar eclipse of sorts. Or should I say “moon” eclipse? Hah! He even has his own custom shade called Vulcan Grey. Any guesses on how many gallons of paint the largest cast iron statue in the world needs?
Cleaner Air Err’where
Birmingham’s air quality has improved, and we’ve got the data to prove it. Historically, our air quality has been among the worst in the nation. I mean, I would’ve never known it on my walks on 18th Ave S, but alas, the facts don’t lie. As opposed to previous years, this year we only ranked in one of the top 25 “worst” categories—year-round particle pollution, which is an average level of daily solid and liquid pollution particles. There is always room for improvement, and the encouraging news is that Birmingham has continuously and significantly reduced pollution levels over the years. Peep the graphs.
Civitan Breaks Down Barriers
Civitan International, headquartered in Birmingham, recently named Scarlet Little Thompson as the first female leader of the service organization. Thompson will begin her role as Executive Vice President in July, as the organization celebrates 100 years of existence. Bham Now got to interview Thompson about her career and the potential she sees in Birmingham. Read her insightful answers, and expect Civitan to keep doing great things for the city and the world with Thompson on board.
“You want a Coke?” “Yeah, what kinds do you have?”
The Coca-Cola UNITED HQ in Birmingham recently closed on an acquisition to re-franchise the metro Atlanta distribution territory, meaning more jobs, tax revenue, and accolades all around. Probably the coolest part is that now, the Birmingham based bottler is operating in the hometown of The Coca-Cola Company. Your next visit to the bottling plant is gonna be a lot sweeter. Get all the deets.
They Call it Magic
The Magic City Art Connection last weekend hosted over 200 artists from Alabama and across the country, and we got some exclusive interviews to find out more about their work and festival experience in the ‘ham. Be sure to check out the photo of Erick Forsyth of Three Graces Studio. He is a spitting image of Bham Now’s hipster Vulcan logo. I’ll never be able to un-see it.
Woodlawn Knows Food
Our #SmallBizSpotlight this week is on City Meats and Vegetables in Woodlawn. David Davis gave us the history of the almost 25-year-old City Meats, and a little tidbit of info about the “MILLS” tile laid in the floor. The chicken is fresh and delivered daily, and the fresh produce comes from the Urban Food Project in Woodlawn, as well. The whole shop is kept up by only four people, so if you’re a regular, they probably know your full name and dinner schedule by now. Learn more about City Meats here.
Hill Yeah
Birmingham sits right next to a mountain, so we do not have a lack of hills throughout the city. I can drive them all day, but it’s the ambitious and athletic residents that truly deserve the road. Runners, if you’re looking to step up your regular route, check out these hills to run. You’ll have #views in Homewood, Five Points, Hoover, Mountain Brook, and Downtown. I’ll wave at you from my window. 😉
Taking the “pain” out of “campaign”
Are you keeping up with our potential municipal candidate interviews?
Top 3 Events This Week
- Pirate Train Ride Grand Opening @ The Birmingham Zoo. Saturday, May 6th. 9AM-2PM. $16+.
- Kentucky Derby Party @ the newly renovated Birmingham Race Course. Saturday, May 6. 9AM.
- Creed Bratton (from The Office): An Evening of Music and Comedy @ The Syndicate Lounge. Saturday, May 6th. 7PM. $20 in advance/$25 day of. 18+
PLUS: Check out Producer James’ event picks of the week. Hint: this week’s concerts are what’s up. Also, Bham Now will be updated shortly with how to celebrate this Friday – Cinco De Mayo – so stay tuned in.
Want more? We’ve been busy adding over 2,200 events to the Bham Now calendar.
Bite-sized
Guide: In honor of Samford’s upcoming graduation—The Things You Need: Samford University-Inspired Gifts
Weather: Possible thunderstorm and rain tomorrow and Friday, but comfortable daytime temps in the 70s/80s the rest of the week. Night temps in the 50s and 60s. Ahh. Looks like spring is here to stay.
Eat: Meatball flight from Cashio’s Meatball Market.
Job: Developer Level 3 @ EBSCO.
Adorable and Adoptable: Meet Rebel! He’s a Basset Hound mix with the cutest little legs that I’ve ever seen. Learn more about him and how to foster-to-adopt here.
This morning, I had to make a quick drop off at the Shuttlesworth airport. We noticed that there was a lot designated for Uber cars. Any bets on how long that lot was completely empty before Uber existed? Or ideas on what it might have been used for in a previous life?
Don’t know about ya’ll, but I’m excited for this new month. Lots of fun events are popping up and I’m gonna have to give my planner a pep-talk. As always, thanks for reading Bham Now.
Hunter Holland, Producer
Let me know what’s up – hunter@bhamnow.com
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