Plans announced to turn Century Plaza site into major logistics center, Council to consider rezoning property

A plan has been announced to redevelop Century Plaza into a 200,000 square-foot logistics center that could bring over 300 jobs to District 2.

The Century Plaza Mall has been shuttered since 2009 and Councilor Hunter Williams, who represents the district, said this has been a major point of concern for residents over the years.

“One thing residents on the eastern side of Birmingham have been asking for is the repurposing of the old Century Plaza Mall,” Williams said. “While many options have been considered over the years, unfortunately, none of those options materialized due to the immense cost associated with rehabbing or demolishing the shuttered mall. This new facility, along with the VA Center that is currently being developed just down the street, will bring hundreds of jobs to Birmingham creating a huge synergy to the Crestwood Blvd corridor.”

Here are a few of the details of the proposed project:

• The facility will be a state-of-the-art class-A single-story building with concrete walls and glass features at the entry.
• The facility will provide significant jobs with over 1,400 delivery drivers operating to and from the property and over 320 associates and managers working within the premises.
• The proposed facility is designed for a package delivery service. Packages arriving at this facility are prepackaged in cardboard boxes and labeled for shipping within local neighborhoods and areas surrounding the facility. The packages are brought into the facility via semi trucks, using designated loading dock positions. The model limits the number of large trucks that would arrive at the facility in order to mitigate traffic concerns.

Councilor Williams said the Birmingham City Council will need to rezone the property before construction can proceed. As it stands, the new logistics center could be opened by June 21, 2021. The Eastwood Neighborhood Association voted 5–4 against rezoning for the new logistics center. However, Williams said his office has received calls from dozens of residents who live in that area and other adjoining neighborhoods who are in favor of the project.