Alabama is the most car-dependent state in the nation, according to previous studies, and we have more cars than people.
What would it take to make the places of Greater Birmingham walkable? What do design professionals, engineers, developers, and public officials need to know if they are to make Birmingham’s neighborhoods and the communities of surrounding cities more attractive to pedestrians?
These are the questions examined and explored at Harvard University’s The Walkable City workshop, a two-day program on the most effective arguments, techniques, and tools for reshaping places to support walking, biking, and public transit.
Each year, the Philip A. Morris Fund for Design Arts at the Community Foundation of Greater Birmingham supports a cohort of local leaders to attend this workshop to build local knowledge and cooperation around urban design and walkable communities.
“I learned an entire new visual vocabulary and I see crosswalks, intersections, bike lanes, parking stripes, and other elements of the streetscape in a way I never had before,” said Glenny Brock, who participated in the 2025 cohort. Brock, who was instrumental in the restoration of Birmingham’s Lyric Theatre, is currently working to revitalize the Lincoln Theatre in Bessemer. “Workshop leader Jeff Speck said several times, ‘It’s amazing how much you can achieve with paint.’ I found this so inspiring.”
The 2025 cohort included leaders from across the Greater Birmingham region:
• Joe Ayers – Real Estate Director, Woodlawn United
• Melanie Bouyer – Executive Director, Bessemer Redevelopment Corporation
• Lisa Bright – Member, Trussville City Council
• Glenny Brock – Outreach Coordinator, Lyric Theater and Lincoln Theatre projects
• Carol Clarke – CEO, Neighborhood Housing Services of Birmingham
• Forrest Johnson – Transportation Design Engineer, City of Birmingham
• James Stewart – Mayor of Irondale
• Mashonda Taylor – President & CEO, Woodlawn United
Carol Clarke, CEO of Neighborhood Housing Services of Birmingham and city councilor for District 8 in Birmingham, shared that one of her most memorable experiences at the workshop was working in a small group to redesign a pedestrian “unfriendly” intersection into something simpler that would safely accommodate multiple modes of transit and perhaps also encourage cars to use an alternate route.
“As a city councilor, I actually get to make or influence decisions about complete street design within my district,” Clarke said. “I certainly feel more empowered to do that more thoughtfully.”
Meanwhile, Brock said she is “dreaming and scheming” about the best ways to put theory into practice in Bessemer. She has her eye on The Lincoln Theatre, the popular restaurant The Bright Star, and the Albano building — a historic structure owned by The Holland Project, the same 501c3 that owns the Lincoln, and is located on the site of the first commercial lot ever sold in Bessemer.
“I’m thinking of those three sites as three parts of a constellation and pondering how we can get people moving between them,” she said. “On their feet, of course.”
Mayor James Stewart of Irondale is already putting into practice some of the things he learned at the workshop.
“The community tours changed how I see development,” he said. “Walking through established neighborhoods and shopping districts with fellow students and planners was an eye-opening experience. We analyzed what worked — and what didn’t — in real time. Seeing successful mixed-use areas in person made abstract concepts tangible. I could envision similar transformations in Irondale.”
Stewart went on to say that learning about form-based zoning was a game-changer.
“Traditional zoning focuses on land use, but form-based zoning prioritizes building design and walkable connections between spaces,” he explained. “Mixed-use development isn’t just about combining residential and commercial — it’s about creating seamless transitions that encourage walking and community interaction. This approach can transform how people experience our city.”
Irondale will be applying these principles to the city’s 245-arce mixed-use development project. Immediate actions include implementing form-based zoning standards and creating public spaces that encourage community gathering, Stewart said.
“This development will serve as a model for Greater Birmingham, demonstrating how smaller cities can create walkable, economically vibrant communities,” Stewart said. “Irondale will become a destination where people want to live, work, and visit — not just drive through.”