Birmingham council approves closure, supporters and neighbors clash over car-wash traffic

The Birmingham City Council on Tuesday approved an ordinance to close motor-vehicle access on Twentieth Avenue South at a point approximately 190 feet from its intersection with Richard Arrington Jr. Boulevard, after a public hearing in which neighbors said the move was needed to protect residents and the developer warned the closure would render the site inoperable. The vote to approve the closure followed more than an hour of public comment and discussion among council members and city staff.

Neighbors said the proposed car wash and existing cut-through traffic have made Twentieth Avenue South dangerous and difficult to use for everyday activities. "I've had three cars in my yard," said Lisa Lewis, a resident of 2000 Twentieth Street South. "We love our neighborhood, and this is really destroying our neighborhood." Tricia Portwies, who lives directly behind the new car wash site, said the development's traffic projections and local driving patterns made it likely she would frequently be unable to exit her driveway. "I anticipate that I am not able to get out of my driveway when I choose to," she said.

The city presented a compromise of traffic…