View source for 209-211 21st Street North

[[Image:Barber lot sign.jpg|right|thumb|375px|The vacant lot in December 2011]]
'''209-211 21st Street North''' or, more properly, 209-211 [[Richard Arrington Jr Boulevard North]], is a 4,000 square-foot parcel (Lot 11) located on [[Block 84]] in [[downtown Birmingham]] on the east side of 21st Street adjoining [[2nd Alley North]], across  the alley from the [[Jackson Building]] and across the street from the [[City Federal Building]]. 

In the early 1890s the property, divided in two parcels, was owned by [[George Lunsford]] and his wife [[Susan Lunsford|Susan]]. In [[1892]] George constructed the five story [[Lunsford Hotel|Lunsford Building]], which he operated as the [[Lunsford Hotel]]. In [[1894]] the hotel became the first home of the [[Birmingham Medical College]], a predecessor to [[UAB]].

The hotel was operating in the 1930s as the [[Milner Hotel]], with an office supply company on the ground floor. Later, with the upper floors removed, it was renovated as a two-story building that at one point housed a Dr Scholl's Foot Comfort Shop.

[[Image:Lunsford Hotel.jpg|left|thumb|225px|The Lunsford Hotel. Courtesy Samford Special Collections]]
Former [[Barber Dairy]] president [[George Barber]] purchased the property in the 1990s. In [[2009]] he had the existing building on the site demolished. In September of that year he offered the property for free to anyone pledging to construct a business and occupy the site for a minimum of five years. The difficulty of securing financing caused several proposals to fall through, and in the meantime, the space was used as an informal dog park by downtown residents. In [[2012]] Barber struck a deal with law student [[Harris Stewart]] to construct the [[Trim Tab Brewhouse]] on the lot.

In May [[2013]] members of the the [[Greater Birmingham Food Truck Coalition]] began using the gravel-covered lot as a semi-permanent '''Food Truck Lot'''.

==References==
* ''[http://books.google.com/books?id=2n87AAAAIAAJ&lpg=PA24&ots=DhCWejrViD&dq=%22Lunsford%20Hotel%22%20birmingham&pg=PA24#v=onepage&q=%22Lunsford%20Hotel%22&f=false Lunsford v. Harrison]'' (November 27, 1901) Supreme Court of Alabama
* Tomberlin, Michael (September 23, 2009) "Free property for anyone who will build, run business in downtown Birmingham, Alabama." {{BN}}
* Diel, Stan (January 20, 2011) "Birmingham businessman George Barber finds few takers for downtown land giveaway." {{BN}}
* Diel, Stan (May 10, 2012) "Brewpub planned for George Barber's free downtown lot." {{BN}}
* Natta, Andre (May 20, 2013) "[http://bhamterminal.com/blog/2013/05/20/food-truck-lot-opens/ A new lot for food trucks in downtown Birmingham.]" ''The Terminal''

==Exernal links==
* [http://www.barbercompanies.com/index/news-app/story.24 property offer] from Barber Companies

[[Category:21st Street North]]
[[Category:Dog parks]]
[[Category:Food trucks]]
[[Category:Block 84]]