Councilor JT Moore Welcomes Global Logistics Company Kuehne+Nagel to District 4

Welcome to Birmingham, Kuehne+Nagel! Last week we celebrated another win in District 4 -- a brand new Air Cargo Facility at the Birmingham-Shuttlesworth International Airport.

This $27 million building will be a new line of business that includes weekly cargo flights from Stuttgart, Germany.

The flights are geared toward the automotive, aerospace and pharmaceutical industries. Mercedes-Benz, which manufactures automobiles and lithium-ion batteries in Alabama, is expected to benefit from improvements in supply chain efficiency.

This partnership with Kuehne+Nagel represents a new era of business development at the airport and we’re excited to see how it will expand the city of Birmingham!

Council President Darrell O'Quinn Presents $150,000 Check to Upskill Workforce Initiative at Sloss Tech

Here is what Council President Darrell O'Quinn had to say about this important investment:

"I’ve had a lot of conversations lately with business leaders -- talking about how one of the biggest hurdles the Birmingham metro region faces is brain drain.

Over the last few decades we have been losing too many of our young people to other Southern cities like Nashville, Atlanta, and Chattanooga.

We all know it’s not because we don’t have homegrown talent here. We have that in spades.

The problem that we need to tackle is: how do we increase access to opportunities for our local workforce in the tech industry? Unfortunately, we know that an opportunity gap exists here.

But today, I’m honored to be able to contribute $150,000 from my office’s American Rescue Plan Act funding to help close that gap and establish the Birmingham Upskill Workforce Initiative.

By focusing on creating tech opportunities for local talent, we can build up the local workforce to recruit new companies, and expand on the thriving tech ecosystem in our own backyard.

Not only will this initiative strengthen Birmingham’s workforce, it will play a crucial role in diversifying our local economy, helping to reduce the dependency on a single industry or sector.

Diversity is one of our greatest strengths here in Birmingham and this program will open a lot more doors for our local talent, so they can be a part of the city's evolution from an industrial relic, to a leader in technology and innovation for decades to come."

Councilor LaTonya Tate closes out Gun Violence Awareness Month with important message

"Did you know that Guns are the leading cause of death for African-American men between the ages of 18-34?

And did you know that in an average year, nearly 1,200 people die by guns and another 3,000 are wounded in Alabama?

Guns are now the leading cause of death among children in Alabama.

We can and must do better, Birmingham. Thank you to everyone who rose to the occasion this June in observance of National Gun Safety Awareness Month.

No problems are going to be solved by you pulling a trigger. So think it through and put down your guns before you become another gun violence statistic.

I hope you all will continue to join me in the fight to end this epidemic of violence. That starts with breaking the culture of silence and making Birmingham an uncomfortable place for those who choose violence.

If you see something, say something."
 

--District 9 Birmingham City Councilor LaTonya Ta

Jefferson County Councilors Coalition Breakfast 

Council President Darrell O'Quinn and Councilor Carol Clarke, joined the Jefferson County Councilors Coalition this morning to discuss regional topics of interests. This included public transportation updates, opioid settlement funds, the Red Rocks Trail System and real estate developments with guest speaker Dick Schmalz, President of RGS Properties.

These meetings are crucial for ongoing regional cooperation and we’re so grateful for the support of our local partners!