Tuxedo Terrace

Tuxedo Court is a public housing project operated by the Housing Authority of the Birmingham District located at 2035 Avenue Q Ensley in the Tuxedo neighborhood of the Ensley adjacent to Exit 120 off I-20/I-59. The project is being completely rebuilt as the Tuxedo Court Hope VI Revitalization Project.

Construction of the original housing project was completed in 1961 after twelve blocks of existing housing were cleared. It takes its name from its close proximity to the historic Tuxedo Junction. The project included 110 separate buildings to house low-income residents. At its closure, this project contained 488 low-income units.

The redevelopment will encompass a 306-unit mixed-income community with 220 apartments and 86 single-family houses. Half of the apartments will be reserved for public housing clients while the remainder will be leased at market rate. The single family homes will all be sold.

Rebuilding

Demolition of the 1961 housing began in 2006 with funds from a $20 million grant Hope VI grant from HUD received in July 2004. Construction is being managed by the Boulevard Group of Atlanta, Georgia. Ground was officially broken in May 2006, but there were several delays before construction could proceed.

In October 2006 the Jefferson County Commission committed $2 million toward infrastructure improvements at the revitalized community. In March 2007 it awarded a $14.8 million construction contract to Trawick Contractors for construction of phase one, however construction was delayed a month later when the authority rejected all bids for infrastructure work after learning of errors in the bid specifications. It awarded a $6.4 million infrastructure contract to Russo Corporation in June, but voted to terminate the contract a few months later before work began because of conflicts with City of Birmingham requirements. The infrastructure contract was re-awarded to Russo at $6.3 million in February 2008, a month after the second phase of construction was awarded to Trawick at $16 million. Crews resumed work in late March. The federal grant funding will expire on October 1, 2009.

References

• Birmingham Business Journal (June 4, 2004) "Birmingham wins $20M HUD grant." Birmingham Business Journal [1]
• Norton, Ingrid (July 20, 2006) "From Dance Halls to Ghost Town: Recognizing Ensley’s Tuxedo Junction" Birmingham Weekley [2]
• Norris, Toraine (December 4, 2007) "Hope VI Project in Ensley could be delayed until next year." Birmingham News
• Norris, Toraine (January 29, 2008) "Construction contract awarded for Hope VI program in Tuxedo Court in Birmingham." Birmingham News
• Norris, Toraine (March 24, 2008) "Tuxedo Court community construction to begin in Birmingham." Birmingham News
• Norris, Toraine (May 20, 2008) "Tuxedo Court project manager assures housing authority $20 million federal grant will be spent before September 2009 deadline." Birmingham News

External links

• Housing Authority of the Birmingham District official website