20th Street pedestrian — Amazing food and street view from Trattoria Central (Image Courtesy of Dine Local)

Birmingham’s city council has announced it may be making 20th Street a pedestrian way. Potential developments are on the horizon!

A Pedestrian Street

With beautiful trees and landscaping and quaint restaurants with outdoor seating, 20th Street already draws pedestrians to its businesses and restaurants.

By making the street open to pedestrians, City Council President Johnathan Austin hopes to attract even more customers to these locations.

Additionally, Austin hopes it will draw more businesses and restaurants to settle on this bustling street.

Some popular restaurants located along this path are:

Brick & Tin
Bistro Two Eighteen
Trattoria Centrale
Paramount Bar
Cafe Dupont

A Facelift for 20th Street

Making this street pedestrian-friendly will not only make business boom downtown but will also give 20th Street a facelift.

Andre Bittas, director of planning, engineering and permits for the City of Birmingham noted that it’s time for much of the landscaping, lights and street furniture added in the 80’s to be replaced.

It should be added that the city’s bus system-the Magic City Connector– would also be allowed on 20th Street but would run for free.

According to Jonathan Austin, the conversion of 20th street will have a positive impact on the health of Birmingham as a whole.

“It will help retail along that street, and even encourage more businesses to locate there, if you are only seeing foot traffic,” Austin said. “And if we use that middle lane for the (Magic City) Connector, it encourages use of public transportation, and it encourages people to walk, which is healthy.”

As a result, the potential transformation of this street would not only help Birmingham’s businesses but would also promote physical activity and make this location a must-see for tourists.