Valley Avenue: Difference between revisions
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*** 706: [[Great Wall Chinese Restaurant]] | *** 706: [[Great Wall Chinese Restaurant]] | ||
*** 730: [[Starz Karaoke Lounge]] | *** 730: [[Starz Karaoke Lounge]] | ||
*** 800: [[Nob Hill Apartments]] | *** 800: [[Vida on Valley]] apartments, formerly [[Nob Hill Apartments]] (built 1972) | ||
** South side: | ** South side: | ||
* Mecca Avenue intersection | * Mecca Avenue intersection |
Revision as of 16:20, 10 September 2018
Valley Avenue is an approximately 2¼ mile east-west street running along the southern slope of Red Mountain from Green Springs Highway in the west to Richard Arrington Jr Boulevard South (18th Street South) in the east. The road continues to the west as West Valley Avenue and to the east as 21st Avenue South. Except for the approximate half mile strip of commercial lots east of Green Springs, most of Valley Avenue is lined with apartment complexes.
The original portion of Valley Avenue was built for Valley View Apartments in 1948 and extended only about eight-tenths of a mile from 18th Street to Valley View Drive. In the 1960s, the road was extended to connect 18th Street, which was still U.S. Highway 31 at the time, and Green Springs Highway.
From Nob Hill Drive to 18th Street, Valley Avenue runs along the Birmingham and Homewood city borders. Valley Avenue is not, however, the official border and approximately 1.7 miles of the road are within Homewood. The irregular border has given rise to situations where children in the same apartment complex, and even the same building, might attend different city schools. The deciding factor in some cases is which city the apartment's main bedroom is in.
In 2014, Homewood commissioned a study by Goodwyn, Mills & Cawood, which was performed by Skipper Consulting, which found that 16,600 cars travel between Mecca Avenue and the Palisades Boulevard/Beacon Parkway East intersection on a daily basis. The study was done in advance of a repaving project funded through an ATRIP Grant expected to be completed in mid- to late-2015. Homewood officials were unable to find any records of Valley Avenue being repaved for over 20 years before that. The project would convert the road from Mecca to Moretti Circle from an undivided, 4-lane road to 3-lane road including a central two-way turn lane.
Notable locations
- Green Springs Highway intersection (continues west as West Valley Avenue)
- North side:
- Green Springs Chevron
- 312: Precision Tune Auto Care
- 316: Baby Ray's (formerly Johnny Ray's)
- 328: El Sol Cantina & Taqueria/U-Haul
- 342: Sammy's Gentleman's Club
- 350: Arby's
- South side:
- Walgreen's
- 313: Sonic Drive-In
- 321: former location of Valley Skate Center, Holiday Skate Center (1982)
- Suite A: NAPA Auto Parts
- Suite B: DeWalt Service Center
- Suite C: Red Mountain Climatic Storage (formerly Budget Movers & Mini Storage)
- 328: former location of Corey's sports bar
- 337: Full Moon Bar-B-Que (originally D'Lites of America)
- 342: former location of Cork 'N Cleaver
- 345: Wendy's
- 367: Rafiki's Grill, former location of Ham Bones (1982), Butters restaurant (1982-1985), Longneck's & Steaks (May-December 1985), Jolly Rogers Tavern, Coffee on Valley, Farmhouse Restaurant
- North side:
- Beacon Parkway West/Palisades Drive intersection
- North side:
- 400: Birmingham Scottish Rite Temple
- Electrical substation
- South side:
- 401: former location of Up The Mast restaurant and lounge, Michael's Ship Ahoy restaurant and lounge
- 433: Gordo's Market, formerly The Computer Center (1978)
- 449: The Upper Deck
- 513: Fox Valley Apartments
- North side:
- Beacon Parkway East/Palisades Boulevard intersection
- North side:
- Shell station
- 700: Roman Bar & Grill
- 706: Great Wall Chinese Restaurant
- 730: Starz Karaoke Lounge
- 800: Vida on Valley apartments, formerly Nob Hill Apartments (built 1972)
- South side:
- North side:
- Mecca Avenue intersection
- North side:
- Overlook at Homewood (formerly Valley Ridge Apartments)
- South side:
- Homewood Middle School (address is on Mecca Avenue)
- Magnolia Park at Homewood Apartments (formerly Willow Bend Apartments)
- North side:
- Golden Crest Drive intersection
- Single-family houses
- Valley View Drive intersection
- Vulcan Park Condominiums (formerly known as Valley View Apartments)
- Robert S. Smith Drive (entrance to The Club)/Clermont Drive intersection
- Vulcan Park Condominiums
- Ashwood Lane/Beckham Drive intersection
- Vulcan Park Condominiums
- Moretti Circle (previously Hillside Circle) intersection
- Vulcan Park Condominiums
- Valley View Drive intersection (entrance to Vulcan Park)
- Jefferson County Board of Education (formerly State Farm Insurance; address is on 18th Street South)
- Richard Arrington Jr Boulevard South (18th Street South) intersection (continues east as 21st Avenue South)
References
- Bryan, Kim. (November 10, 2007). "Homewood boundaries have some limitations." The Birmingham News.
- Rodriguez, Ana. (October 3, 2014). "For Valley Avenue drivers, where potholes are 'monsters' and traffic heavy, relief might come soon." The Birmingham News.