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City Council approves funds to redevelop historic Ramsay-McCormack Building

BIRMINGHAM TIMES — The Birmingham City Council on Tuesday approved an agreement between the city and Ensley District Developers, LLC to redevelop the historic Ramsay-McCormack building in downtown Ensley. The council voted 8-1 with Councilor Steven Hoyt being the no vote after raising some concerns about the project.

Published

6 years ago

October 31, 2019

Oakland Post

The 10 story Ramsay-McCormack Building towers over downtown Ensley was once bustling with activity Thursday January 12, 2017 . (Photo by: Frank Couch | The Birmingham Times)

By Erica Wright

The Birmingham City Council on Tuesday approved an agreement between the city and Ensley District Developers, LLC to redevelop the historic Ramsay-McCormack building in downtown Ensley.

The council voted 8-1 with Councilor Steven Hoyt being the no vote after raising some concerns about the project.

The council approved spending $1.5 million towards the pre-development work and $2.5 million for construction.

The vote came during a meeting where the body unanimously elected Councilor William Parker as the Birmingham City Council President and Councilor Wardine Alexander as President Pro Tempore. Parker replaces Valerie Abbott who had served as president since 2017.

The redevelopment of the Ramsay-McCormack building has long been talked about and city officials were elated what the project could mean for the Ensley community and the city.

Mayor Randall Woodfin called the project “a big deal.”

“We’ve seen a lot of business districts grow over time like in Avondale and Woodlawn and what we’re saying is the same type of new created foot traffic in all of these other districts, we want the same vitality in downtown Ensley,” he said. “We want people to be able to come there not just from 9-5 and go at night, but at 5:01 we want people to have a reason to stay there.”

With the funding in place, the next step is for the developer to submit a work plan to the city by December 6 that will outline how the building will be used.

Once the work plan is approved, the city will provide $1.3 million for pre-development work that includes hiring a local project manager as well as Birmingham area engineers and architects and holding meetings with community stakeholders. The developer will also secure tenants before construction.

“We want a live, work, play environment that is a 21st century win and we want it to have as many of the amenities and many of the great qualities that other areas here have that the people in Ensley deserve,” said Irvin Henderson, Managing Partner for Ensley District Developers. “We’re really looking to have a great collaboration with the existing property owners, existing residents, and then we want to attract new businesses, new residents and we want to make sure there is an economic development happening in Ensley that allows the feasibility of the entire redevelopment.”

Historic Structure

The Ramsay-McCormack building- a 10-story, 144-foot-tall office tower completed in 1929 and located on the corner of Avenue E and 19th Street Ensley-is named after investment partners Erskine Ramsay and Carr McCormack of the Ramsay-McCormack Development Co.

The building housed the Bank of Ensley on the ground floor, as well as the developer’s offices and local offices for U.S. Steel for several years. Despite a renovation in 1970, the closure of U.S. Steel’s Ensley Works left much of the tower vacant and the building’s doors were closed in 1979.

The city has owned the building since 1983 when U.S. Steel sold the building to the city for $1 and was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1984, but has been empty since 1986.

“To residents of the entire Ensley community who have been in need of some [tender loving care] from the city of Birmingham, we’re glad to provide this [redevelopment],” said Woodfin. “To Councilor [John] Hilliard, who has been an advocate and represents this district and this area and the people of this district and to the majority of the council who approved this, we’re excited about it. We’re excited about our developer at the table. It’s a big deal.”

Hilliard, who represents the area, said this is about much more than just the Ramsay-McCormack building.

“This is truly a great start…but it’s not just about that building, it’s about the development of the Ensley area,” he said. “We need green space, we need blocks to be renovated. We want investors to come. We would like for Ensley to reflect the rest of Birmingham. It’s not just about the building in Ensley . . . people want viable businesses… I thank the department of economic development and the mayor for all that you have done. This is a promise kept.”

Hoyt, who also represents parts of the Ensley area, said though he was in support of the redevelopment, he still had some questions and concerns.

“We’ve already done this mitigation. We’ve spent about $2 or $3 million to mitigate the lead and the asbestos and all of that so we shouldn’t be paying for a test that’s already been done… that’s why it’s hard for me to support this on the surface because that’s a waste of money,” said Hoyt.

New Leadership

In other council news, Parker was unanimously elected as the Birmingham City Council President and Alexander President Pro Tempore on a 5-4 vote. Councilors Abbott, Alexander, Parker, O’Quinn and Williams voted for Alexander while Councilors Woods, Hilliard, Smitherman and Hoyt voted for Hilliard.

Parker said he’s ready to get to work as president and plans to meet with his colleagues. “We are a team and we’re going to work as a team and we’re going to roll up our sleeves to make sure we work together collectively as one group,” he said during Tuesday’s meeting. “I’ll be talking to everyone individually but we want to make sure that we are a body, we’re going to work with the mayor and make sure it’s all 10 of us so we’re going to work.”

Alexander was appointed to the council last year to fill the unexpired term of Jay Roberson. She is in a November runoff with Ray Brooks for the District 7 seat.

For more about the Ramsay-McCormack redevelopment, visit www.birminghamal.gov/ensleyredevelopment.

This article originally appeared in The Birmingham Times.

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Poll Shows Support for Policies That Help Families Afford Child Care

BLACKPRESSUSA NEWSWIRE — New national polling shows persistent voter concern about the affordability and availability of child care for working parents, alongside broad support across key demographic groups for federal child care policies that help families afford care.

Published

1 week ago

March 2, 2026

Oakland Post

By First Five Years Fund

New national polling shows persistent voter concern about the affordability and availability of child care for working parents, alongside broad support across key demographic groups for federal child care policies that help families afford care.

The national survey was conducted by UpOne Insight on behalf of the First Five Years Fund from January 13–18, 2026.

Key findings include:

• Parents need help: 80% of voters say the ability of working parents to find and afford child care is either in a state of crisis or a major problem.

• This is an affordability issue: 82% believe federal child care funding will help lower costs for working families — including 69% of Republicans, 84% of Independents, and 94% of Democrats.

• And there continues to be strong support (62%) for the Child Care and Development Block Grant (CCDBG), a federal program that makes it possible for hundreds of thousands of families to afford safe, quality care for their children while parents work or go to school, including a majority of Republicans, 63% of Independents and 72% of Democrats.

• Support for funding child care programs remains strong: 75% believe child care funding should be increased or kept at current levels — including 75% of Republicans, 85% of Independents, and 97% of Democrats.

• 74% say funding for child care is an important and good use of tax dollars, including a majority of Republicans, three-quarters of Independents, and nine in ten Democrats.

FFYF Executive Director Sarah Rittling said, “Voters across the country are sending a clear message: federal child care and early learning programs work. These investments help parents stay in the workforce, strengthen families, and support healthy child development. They have also long had strong bipartisan support in Congress. At a time when affordability is top of mind for families, continued federal funding is essential to ensure child care remains accessible and within reach.”

First Five Years Fund works to protect, prioritize, and build bipartisan support for quality child care and early learning programs at the federal level. Reliable, affordable, and high-quality early learning and child care can be transformative, not only enhancing a child’s prospects for a brighter future but also bolstering working parents and fostering economic stability nationwide.

We work with Congress and the Administration to identify federal solutions that work for families with young children, as well as states and communities. We work with policymakers to identify ways to increase access to affordable, high-quality child care and early learning programs for children. And we collaborate with advocacy groups to help align best practices with the best possible policies. http://www.ffyf.org

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Trump’s MAGA Allies are Creating Executive Order Plan to Steal the 2026 Midterms

NNPA NEWSWIRE — The document that could lead to an executive order proposes using the claim that China interfered with the 2020 elections as grounds to “declare a national emergency.” The move would be an unprecedented step that would grant Trump new authority over the voting systems in the U.S.

Published

1 week ago

February 27, 2026

Oakland Post

By Lauren Victoria Burke, NNPA Newswire Correspondent

A group of MAGA pro-Trump activists, who say they are working in coordination with the White House, are circulating a 17-page draft executive order that would claim without evidence that China interfered with the 2020 presidential election. Donald Trump lost the 2020 presidential to President Joe Biden by over 7 million votes. Since Trump lost to Biden in 2020, he has repeatedly claimed that the election was “stolen” without evidence. The report of a group of “Trump allies” preparing an executive order to give Trump power over elections was first reported by The Washington Post.

The lies around the right-wing campaign that pushed falsehoods that the 2020 election was stolen was trafficked through right-wing media, particularly Fox News. Fox News was then sued for defamation for the claims by Dominion Voting Systems. Fox lost the case and had to settle for the largest defamation amount on record of $787.5 million in April 2023.

The document that could lead to an executive order proposes using the claim that China interfered with the 2020 elections as grounds to “declare a national emergency.” The move would be an unprecedented step that would grant Trump new authority over the voting systems in the U.S.

The story in The Washington Post arrives as Trump increasingly signals that he may take actions that would alter the result of the 2026 midterms. The Republicans are widely expected to lose as their approval ratings plummet as a result of a failing economy under Trump. Over 50 members of Congress have announced they will retire this year and not return in 2027.

The Trump Department of Justice, which now has a large image of Trump on the side of it, “sued five new states Thursday [Feb. 26, 2026] demanding access to their unredacted voter rolls — escalating a campaign that has been rejected by multiple federal courts and faces resistance from Republican-led states as well,” according to Democracy Docket, a group that works to protect voting rights.

Trump claimed back in late 2020, the last year of his first term, that he had the authority to issue an executive order related to mail-in voting for the 2020 elections — which he would then lose. But the Constitution states that control of elections lies with the states. As the GOP works to place hurdles in front of voting, Democrats worked to make voting easier.

In March 2021, President Biden signed an executive order calling on federal agencies to expand voting access as part of the Biden Administration’s effort “to promote and defend the right to vote for all Americans who are legally entitled to participate in elections.”

Trump’s focus is clearly on altering the November 2026 midterm elections. Trump’s polling numbers and the elections and special elections that have taken place around the U.S. over the last year clearly indicate that Republicans are about to be hit by a blue wave of Democratic victories.

Lauren Victoria Burke is an independent investigative journalist and the founder of Black Virginia News. She is a political analyst who appears on #RolandMartinUnfiltered and hosts the show LAUREN LIVE on YouTube @LaurenVictoriaBurke. She can be contacted at LBurke007@gmail.com and on twitter at @LVBurke

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PRESS ROOM: NBA Hall of Fame Nominee Terry Cummings Joins 100 Black Men of DeKalb County to Launch Victory & Values Initiative

NNPA NEWSWIRE — NBA Hall of Fame nominee and Basketball Legend Terry Cummings was administered the official member’s oath and ceremonially pinned during a special induction ceremony held on Friday, February 20th.

Published

1 week ago

February 27, 2026

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Cummings becomes an honorary member, joining other role model sports stars

NBA Hall of Fame nominee and Basketball Legend Terry Cummings has officially become an honorary member of the 100 Black Men of DeKalb County, marking a powerful new chapter for the 100 Black Men and youth development across the region.

Cummings was administered the official member’s oath and ceremonially pinned during a special induction ceremony held on Friday, February 20th. The moment signified more than membership — it marked the launch of the organization’s transformative new platform, the Victory & Values Initiative.

The Victory & Values Initiative is a groundbreaking youth development program designed to empower elementary and middle school students through a dynamic blend of sports, mentorship, and STEM exposure. The initiative focuses on building health, discipline, character, leadership, and access to opportunity — creating pathways for long-term academic and personal success.

“This is about more than sports,” said Cummings during the ceremony. “It’s about using the platform of athletics to teach life lessons, create access, and build the next generation of leaders.”

The induction ceremony also featured notable guests including NASCAR’s newest Star Driver, Lavar Scott and NASCAR Director of Athletic Performance, Phil Horton, who joined Cummings for a powerful Victory & Values Town Hall discussion. The Town Hall was moderated by renowned Sports Emcee John Hollins and focused on leadership, resilience, discipline, and the importance of mentorship in shaping young lives.

A “Day at NASCAR” for 75+ Youth

Cummings wasted no time getting to work. On his first full day as an honorary member, he joined his new brothers of the 100 Black Men of DeKalb County to host a “Day at NASCAR,” escorting more than 75 youth to a once-in-a-lifetime experience at EchoPark Motor Speedway (formerly Atlanta Motor Speedway).

The youth participants received behind-the-scenes access including: an exclusive tour of Pit Row, access to the Garage Area and exploration of the interactive Fan Zone.

The experience culminated with a surprise meet-and-greet and Q&A session with NASCAR Superstar Bubba Wallace, who shared insights on perseverance, preparation, and breaking barriers in professional sports.

The day served as a living example of the ‘Victory & Values’ Initiative in action — exposing youth to new industries, expanding their vision for the future, and connecting them directly with high- level mentors and role models.

Building Leaders Through Access and Mentorship

The 100 Black Men of DeKalb County – a chapter of the largest, national mentoring organization in the county – continues to expand its footprint with programs focused on academic excellence, economic empowerment, leadership development, and health & wellness.

The launch of ‘Victory & Values’ represents a strategic expansion of the organization’s impact

intentionally integrating athletics and STEM to engage youth at an early age while reinforcing core principles such as integrity, accountability, teamwork, and perseverance.

“Our mission has always been to mentor the next generation,” said Vaughn Irons, President-Elect of the 100 Black Men of DeKalb County. “With Terry Cummings joining the brotherhood, along with partners in NASCAR and professional sports, we are creating unprecedented access and exposure for our youth. Victory & Values is about turning inspiration into structured opportunity.”

By connecting elementary and middle school students to professional athletes, executives, STEM professionals, and community leaders, the initiative aims to:

Increase youth exposure to careers in sports business, engineering, and performance science
Strengthen mentorship pipelines
Promote physical wellness and mental resilience
Build character-driven leadership at an early age

Open Invitation to Youth and Families

All youth are invited to participate in the Victory & Values Initiative, along with the other countless, impactful programs offered by the 100 Black Men of DeKalb County.

Parents and guardians seeking mentorship, leadership development, academic enrichment, and transformative exposure opportunities for their children are encouraged to connect with the organization.

As NBA Legend Terry Cummings’ induction demonstrates, Victory & Values is more than a program — it is a movement designed to build champions in life, not just in sports.

For more information about the Victory & Values Initiative or to enroll a student, contact: 100 Black Men of DeKalb County at Phone at 404.241.1338, info@100bmod.org or Tee Foxx at 404.791.6525,