In honor of Women’s History Month, Councilor Aldrich Gunn salutes outstanding women from District Four. Mayor Kincaid and Council President Bell hand out roses to those honored, each taking a turn praising the importance of women, especially mothers. “We in Birmingham know from whence we’ve come,” acknowledges Kincaid. “And we know that those hands that used to pick cotton now pick presidents and mayors and city council people.” With a straight face, Bell takes his turn: “When it comes down to raising a young male, it takes a man to make a man out of a boy. But it takes a woman to make a gentleman out of a boy. And were it not for women, we would not have any history, because Adam would not have known what to do!” Those being honored laugh as Bell continues to pour on the charm. “When us men found out that we could go into a cave, it was a woman [who] said, ‘Nah, you got to put some paintings on the wall, you got to fix it up!’ And for that, women truly have been the motivator for civilization to move forward.”Domed stadium talk dominates the first half of the Council meeting. Councilor Lee Wendell Loder wants to know the source of funds before he’ll commit to a resolution that endorses State Representative John Rogers’ tax plan to fund part of the construction for the all-purpose facility. Noting that Birmingham made financial contributions to Mercedes and Honda though their plants were located in other cities, Loder urges financial support from surrounding cities and counties, who will also benefit due to the “regional attraction” nature of the domed facility and its ostensible positive economic impact. He also wants to “tie all the exhibition space we have in the city, including the Fairgrounds, to the multi-purpose facility, and have some funding to renovate the Fairgrounds and make it what it really should be.” [The Fairgrounds are located in Loder's council district.] Loder also expresses support for the “light rail system” that is scheduled to be discussed later in this morning’s meeting. He notes that the rail system would “be a supplement to the exhibition facility, to Rickwood [Field], to the Fairgrounds,” which would pour money into the western area of town. Loder fails to explain why the rail transit would make a stop at Rickwood Field, but does toss in Visionland as another reason to justify bringing such a transit system to Birmingham. Councilor Gunn endorses Loder’s light rail notions, adding that the airport, whose expansion plans he has angrily questioned, would also be included on the transit route. Councilor Blake reminds Loder that Birmingham citizens voted down a tax-funded domed stadium two years ago. Calling Birmingham the “highest-priced city government in the state of Alabama,” Blake warns that the proposed funding of the domed stadium will “compound the sins of city government in requiring the taxpayers of Birmingham to pay for amenities for the entire community. And it’ll do nothing to stimulate economic growth in the city of Birmingham.”

Although he supports expansion of the Birmingham Jefferson Convention Center complex, Councilor Don MacDermott objects to what he terms a “pin-the-tail-on-the-donkey” approach to expansion, which he defines as “[spending] a little money here, a little money there, building here, building there, and we’ll have a great facility.” He notes that Birmingham is not a “destination city,” such as Chicago, New Orleans, Orlando, and other cities to which Birmingham aspires. Council President Bell responds that the multi-use facility issue before the Council does not include any financial support. Rather, it will simply “clear up that ambiguity as to whether or not we [the Council] have the authority to move forward and even discuss [the dome issue], look at the options, [and] see where the revenues are to fund such an event or activity.” To this Councilor Blake replies, “If I lived in ‘Never Never Land,’ and I could get a domed stadium in Birmingham without the trade-offs and costs, I’d be for it.” Councilor Little notes the “golden opportunities” Birmingham has missed, citing “the airport [and] MAPS” as examples. Little bemoans the “national events” bypassing Birmingham because “we don’t have the facilities nor do we have the rooms and board to put people up.” She explains that the influx of new business and revitalization of existing businesses will result. “Who knows? We surely would probably attract some ‘big team’ to the city of Birmingham.” She urges the Council to send a message of support for a multi-purpose facility to the state legislature. While he supports the “concept” of a multi-purpose facility, Councilor Loder emphasizes, “I don’t buy half-built cars, and I’m not going to take a position on the issue until we get a final product before us. A lot of times we can’t negotiate because we show our hands on issues too early.” The Council votes in favor of the resolution, with Blake and MacDermott casting “no” votes. Loder and Johnson abstain. In closing, Bell adds that he has discussed forming a committee to study the funding of a domed stadium with the Mayor. City Finance Director Mac Underwood and Council Administrator Jarvis Patton are chosen to head up the committee.

Mayor Kincaid requests that Larry Reddick’s mother be allowed to address the Council before he has to leave the council chambers early this morning. Reddick was shot and killed by Birmingham police officer George Montgomery in November 2000 after a scuffle in which Reddick allegedly struck Montgomery with the officer’s baton. Leslie Weaver, Reddick’s mother, remains puzzled as to why her son was shot four times, including a bullet that she believes was fired into his back. An internal investigation concluded that Reddick was not shot in the back. Weaver says she kept her part of the bargain over the past several months by withholding comments while the investigation was going on, but refuses to be quiet any longer, demanding “justice.” She condemns the police department for allowing Montgomery to remain on patrol in the area where the incident occurred. She accuses Jefferson County District Attorney David Barber, who concluded that Officer Montgomery was in the right, of insensitivity. “David Barber tells me I look at TV too much. I don’t look at TV! I look at what he [Barber] gave me on that report. Y’all disrespected me. And you have to live before God, because God said, ‘Vengeance is Mine!’” Weaver says that she expects to be informed of the truth if indeed her son was in the wrong. But if Officer Montgomery is to blame, she wants him punished.

Councilor Little agrees with Weaver that Montgomery should not be patrolling the community where the incident occurred. Little also remains steadfast in her support for a police review board, currently being addressed in the state legislature. She also admits that she believes that “some police officers get on police forces to be bullies, and to bully people!” Councilor Loder also expresses support for the police review board, noting that he personally has not taken a stand on who was to blame in the shooting. Councilor Gunn praises Weaver for addressing the Council, endorsing the police review board, too. “Now that don’t mean the whole police force is wrong,” notes Gunn. “If you got a rat in the barn, you don’t burn the barn down. You get the rat out. And there’s some rats, and you need to get ‘em!”

Councilor Blake also extends sympathy to Weaver, but quickly adds, “We charge about a thousand men and women with the responsibility of upholding the law in the city of Birmingham. We give them a badge, and we give them a gun.” Blake notes that the Mayor, Council, and police chief all “establish policies as to how [police] are to do their duty.” He also adds that police officers put their lives on the line every day. If an officer acts outside the law, he will face the proper consequences, says Blake. But he further notes that there is “no better test of our integrity than whether or not we support their actions” when police act responsibly. Blake explains, “When [police] act according to law and work according to policy, I believe that the Mayor has a moral responsibility. I believe that each member of this Council has a moral responsibility to make a judgement, and everybody has ducked judgement on this one but me, unfortunately, when it comes to public comments.” Councilors Little and Gunn vehemently protest when Blake tells Weaver that her son was to blame in the incident. Blake shakes his head and yells back that the Council is acting “irresponsibly.” He protests Gunn’s labeling of Montgomery as a “rat,” shouting,
“We’ve got a man who followed the law, who did his job and put his life at risk, and you moral cowards won’t back him up because it’s an issue of race! And I am tired of it! Why don’t we just have a policy that white officers can’t go into black districts!”

April 3, 2001

Councilor Little requests that a memorandum from Council President Bell to all councilors regarding “budgetary shortfall” be read into the minutes this morning. In the memo, Bell blames the city’s loss of $20 million in revenues from the Birmingham Water Works Board on Mayor Kincaid for his “failure to execute his duties as administrator, and the ongoing litigation involving the Water Works Board.” Kincaid announces he’ll respond to Bell’s memo next week. The Mayor explains that “the situation in which we find ourselves is a result of a confluence of activities. Neither of us put ourselves in it. [But] we could point fingers.” The Mayor explains in what direction some of the fingers point: “Had the Law Department and the Finance Department been contacted once the judge made his ruling, and we had gone through the proper process, the $20 million would have been transferred before the documents were signed.”Councilor Sandra Little’s main concern is the Roosevelt City fire station budgeted for her district. Kincaid notes his intent to work with the Council, but issues a warning: “Everything has to be on the table. We can not cherry-pick those items that are politically expedient,” pointing out that the Council has almost $600,000 in its consulting budget, a potential area to make up for the financial shortfall. “Probably neither one of us is going to like the final product totally, but at least it will be a joint effort. I think the citizens of Birmingham deserve nothing less,” the Mayor tells Councilor Little. Promptly condemning Kincaid for going on vacation last week while the city was facing news of budget deficits, Little reads from a list, compiled by the Finance Department, of possible budget cuts, including summer youth jobs, the Solid Waste Authority, and the Central Alabama African-American Chamber of Commerce. “And surely the Roosevelt City fire station is on here,” Little notes as she quickly scans the list.

Councilor Jimmy Blake explains that the councilors who “voted to give away the golden goose, the Water Works, got caught with their pants down” for budgeting the unreceived millions once expected from Water Works Board revenue. Blake concedes that
“at one level, the Mayor could have probably been more effective in terms of grabbing that money before it was stolen, given away, however you want to describe it.” The resulting deficit “implies that we are in proration in the city of Birmingham,” notes Blake. “Giving away the Water Works of the city of Birmingham costs the taxpayers of this city $27 million minimum each year, starting at a deficit of $16 million this fiscal year,” argues Blake, who urges the public to elect councilors who will “appoint people to the Water Works Board who will commit to giving us back that most valuable asset.” Blake stresses that such a council pledge must be an “absolute in-blood commitment” that includes the “firing of Charlie Waldrep [attorney representing Water Works Board interests] and all the other people who are pulling strings of the puppets down here on this Council!”

Following unanimous approval by the Council of his resolution for a substantial pay raise for Birmingham policemen and fire fighters, Councilor Blake introduces a resolution proposing phasing out the city’s occupational tax over a 10-year period. Blake calls the tax the “greatest economic stimulus for growth in the rest of Jefferson County that doesn’t have the occupational tax.” Mayor Kincaid addresses Blake’s proposal first, spurring a round of knee-slapping comments. “This borders on being schizophrenic,” says Kincaid as Councilor Gunn giggles uncontrollably. “Just a second ago we had an issue before us where we were talking about increasing the pay of fire and police,” says the Mayor, noting that the pay increase would be “quite a hit on the city’s budget.” Kincaid explains that the occupational tax represents 20 percent of the city’s general fund budget. He notes that “tens of thousands of people converge on the city of Birmingham,” expecting and receiving police and fire protection and “relatively smooth streets” to drive on. “You can’t assault the general fund budget with pay raises on one hand, and on the other hand, start sending out 20 percent of it,” concludes Kincaid.

Requesting that television cameras in the council chambers focus on him, Council President Bell offers the Mayor a wink and big “thumbs up” in agreement. Councilor Little also endorses the Mayor’s comments, laughing, “I think the councilor [Blake] is not schizophrenic. He’s gone crazy now. Just plain ole crazy. And I think he probably pulled his own pants down on this one!” Councilors collapse in fits of laughter. “I don’t know if he’s trying to kill the city of Birmingham or build the city of Birmingham,” says Little as she tries to suppress her own giggles.

Councilor Blake, who also has a resolution on today’s agenda calling for phasing out sales tax on food and groceries over a six-year period, says that he put the proposals regarding the occupational tax, food tax, and pay raises on the agenda to prove a point: “If you give away the Water Works Board, if you give $10 million a year to an ‘upside down fruit bowl [domed stadium],’ and if you give millions to Mercedes, to Honda, you can’t run city government.” Blake pulls his resolution regarding phasing out food and grocery taxes from the agenda.

Councilor Gunn gets the last word on political game playing, noting that Blake is “not the only one who wants to kill this city.” Frowning on the sale of Quinlan Castle this morning for $450,000, Gunn admits that he agreed with the sale only because he had promised to go along with the sale earlier. “That’s a very historical place over there [Quinlan Castle]. And if somebody could get $4.3 million for a hut [presumably a swipe at Blake for the high price he got for selling his mansion in the past year], and we can’t get a million dollars for a castle in Birmingham? And that’s no lie. That’s a castle up there,” scolds Gunn. “It’s not whose head you scratch, but where you itch.” &