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 mitigations but also reviewed a formal request from the neighborhood for a gate to block cut-through traffic. James Fowler, director of the city's Department of Transportation, said the city's review of the developer's traffic study found the majority of new traffic would remain on Richard Arrington and 20 First Avenue South and that, on balance, the study did not show a level of impact that would make the parcel undevelopable. "The impact from the car wash on that specifically is not so great that that would rise to us wanting to restrict that property from being able to be developed," Fowler said. He also told council the city had recommended speed cushions on Twentieth Avenue South as mitigation.

The developer's representative argued the requested gate would make operation of the car wash impossible. "The installation of this gate would essentially make this an inoperable site," said Mike Douglas, who addressed the council on behalf of the car-wash operator. Douglas said the applicant had conducted a traffic study that was reviewed and approved by the city and that the developer had agreed to install speed cushions.

Council members and the mayor debated procedural and legal history during the hearing. City attorney (identified in the hearing as Attorney King) reminded council that prior litigation and a court order had affected the permitting process and recommended an executive session to discuss confidential legal issues if the council wished to pursue them. "I would recommend that we go into executive session to further discuss the pending or potential litigation and legal ramifications related to this lawsuit," Attorney King said, referring to earlier court involvement around permitting for the site.

After public comment and discussion, council proceeded to vote on the closure ordinance. The council approved Item 72, the ordinance authorizing the closure of Twentieth Avenue South to motor-vehicle traffic at the described point. The council recorded the outcome as approved during the meeting; the vote was taken by voice after motion and second were called.

Why it matters: Residents framed the vote as a response to a recurring safety issue: cut-through traffic that avoids signalized intersections and brings additional vehicles to a narrow residential street. Council members cited both neighborhood safety concerns and the city’s need to follow its permitting and legal obligations when assessing the closure request. The decision may reduce cut-through traffic on Twentieth Avenue South but also prompted warnings from the applicant about the commercial viability of their project.

What happens next: The closure ordinance approved by the council will be implemented by the appropriate city departments. Council members asked the administration to follow up with written details about prior permitting, the traffic mitigations the developer had agreed to, and any outstanding legal constraints related to the site. The meeting record shows the matter moved through the city’s public hearing and voting process and that the council expects follow-up coordination among BDOT, the city attorney’s office and neighborhood representatives.

Votes and formal action: The council approved Item 72 (the closure ordinance) during the meeting. The public hearing portion of the agenda included multiple neighbors testifying in favor of the gate, a developer representative opposing it, and city staff describing the traffic review and mitigation recommendations.