Tower on Tenth
Building Trades Tower is a 12-story, 107,881-square-foot, 235-unit multifamily apartment building for senior citizens located at 2021 10th Avenue South on the corner of Richard Arrington Jr Boulevard South, in Five Points South. It occupies the site of the former South Highland School, demolished in 1964. A pedestrian tunnel built for students still connects the property to Brother Bryan Park.
The brick-clad steel-framed tower was built in 1970 for the non-profit Birmingham Buildings Trades Towers, Inc., formed by W. T. Thrash, O. J. Reynolds and Wallace Withers. It was designed in a modern style by Charles H. McCauley Associates architects.
In June 2002 the owners were awarded a $115,000 grant from the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development to offset the cost of renovations. In 2010 Sammy Dodson became the chairman of the board. The City of Birmingham claimed in February 2011 that the apartments' owners were delinquent on $11,790 in occupational taxes and business license fees. The property was auctioned that August with an opening price of $2 million. It is currently owned by Emmanuel Ku of New York, New York.
The building has been evacuated three times due to fires. A small fire occurred on the 7th floor on January 31, 2006. Another on the 9th floor on May 2, 2011 left two dead. Another fire was caused by food left on a stove on the 2nd floor on October 26, 2015.
References
- Weeks, J. D. (2007) Birmingham Then and Now. Then and Now Series. Mount Pleasant, South Carolina: Arcadia Press. ISBN 9780738543666
- Hubbard, Russell (February 12, 2011) "Birmingham says Lakeview restaurant Bogue's owes $157,000 in back taxes." The Birmingham News
- Gray, Jeremy (May 3, 2011) "2 dead in Birmingham Southside apartment building fire, authorities say." The Birmingham News
- Poe, Ryan (August 16, 2011) "Five Points apartment tower loan hits auction block" Birmingham Business Journal
External links
- Building Trades Tower on Emporis.com