Century Plaza development project takes another step forward

We’ve got the latest updates on the redevelopment of Century Plaza. This new logistics center could bring hundreds of jobs to Birmingham, and it’s moving forward step by step. Check it out!

The Background

Back in the day, Century Plaza was one of the largest malls in Alabama with more than 100 tenants filling its 743,785 square feet of retail space. Since it’s closing in 2009, the mall has sat doormat in Birmingham’s Eastwood neighborhood.

Over the past decade, developers have pitched all kinds of plans for the space—from a jail to a mega-church and pretty much everything in-between.

“That location has been something that has been of interest, not just for the neighborhoods around it, but really for the entire eastern side of Birmingham.”

Hunter Williams, Birmingham City Council, District 2

The Project

In May of this year, we reported that the City Council had announced a plan to redevelop the vacant Century Plaza Mall into a 200,000 square-foot logistics center that could bring over 300 jobs to the Eastwood area.

Dubbed “Project Magic,” the Atlanta-based Stonemont Financial Group proposed to demolish the former shopping mall and build a new last-mile delivery center. Here’s what we know about the project itself:

• The facility will be a state-of-the-art class-A single-story building with concrete walls and glass features at the entry.
• The facility will provide significant jobs with over 1,400 delivery drivers operating to and from the property and over 320 associates and managers working within the premises.
• The proposed facility is designed for a last-mile delivery service. Packages arriving at this facility are prepackaged in cardboard boxes and labeled for shipping within local neighborhoods and areas surrounding the facility.

Stonemont and the City of Birmingham declined to name the potential tenant. However, Birmingham Business Journal reported that developers are pitching Amazon to be the tenant for the site.

The Next Steps

In this Birmingham City Council news release from early May 2020, Councilor Hunter Williams talked next steps. Williams claimed that the Birmingham City Council would need to rezone the property before construction can proceed.

Earlier this week, the Council approved that rezoning, which gives the project the green light to move forward.

After the Eastwood Neighborhood Association voted 5–4 against rezoning earlier this year, representatives of the project told councilors that they’ve taken steps to alleviate those concerns, according to the BBJ.

This new step is a big deal for the project, and for the region:

“It’s exciting because we’re able to create jobs, we’re able to take a shuttered mall… and we’re able to revitalize that corridor.

I think it’ll have ripple effects throughout the entire county.”

Hunter Williams, Birmingham City Council, District 2

As always, we’ll be bringing you updates as they happen. If you love watching Birmingham move forward as much as we do, be sure to stay tuned to Bham Now.