List of initiatives proposed by Larry Langford

This is a List of initiatives proposed by Larry Langford.

Since entering politics, Larry Langford has earned a reputation as a fertile wellspring of bold proposals. Birmingham News Editor Tom Scarritt characterized him as "a Gatling gun of ideas."

Birmingham City Council

Langford served a two-year term on the Birmingham City Council from 1977 to 1979.

• Demolishing Sloss Furnaces to construct an industrial park.

Mayor of Fairfield

Langford was Mayor of Fairfield from 1988 to 2000.

• Buying the Flintridge Building to use as a municipal center.
• Building a monorail around the proposed municipal center.
• Bailing out Fairfield City Schools.
• Constructing a new Fairfield High School.
• Constructing the Fairfield Civic Center.
• Implementing drug testing for city employees
• Creating a "Mayor's Commission on Literacy" to plan after-school tutoring and parent education.
• Bringing 11 cities together to jointly construct the Visionland amusement park.

Jefferson County Commission

Langford served one full term on the Jefferson County Commission, and was its president for that term. He was re-elected in 2006, but lost his position as president and resigned after winning the 2007 Birmingham mayoral election. The Birmingham News credited Langford with 69 public initiatives during his first four years on the Jefferson County Commission (2002 - 2006). Among them were:

• Selling the county sewer system to private investors
• Instituting a four day work week for county employees
• Bringing Giuseppe Moretti's "Bust of Christ" to Vulcan Park
• Putting magician's top hats on downtown light poles
• Hiring a public relations firm to promote Jefferson County in the state
• Negotiating bond swap deals to reduce interest payments
• Starting a literacy center for public school students
• Reviving street trolleys
• Board certification for teachers
• Levying an additional 1-cent sales tax to support $1.1 billion in bond funds for school construction
• Naming the Jefferson County Bessemer Justice Center in honor of Medal of Honor recipient George Watson

Mayor of Birmingham

During his campaign for the 2007 election for Mayor of Birmingham, Langford used the slogan "Let's Do Something," and promised that a broad range of major projects would be underway within his first month in office. Many of these were incorporated into his proposal for the Birmingham Economic and Community Revitalization Ordinance which he delivered to the Birmingham City Council two days after he was sworn in. The measure, which was approved on December 4, provides new revenues for the following:

• Increased city funding for transit improvements, including new buses and Heritage streetcars.
• City funding for a domed stadium, (to be located either downtown adjacent to the BJCC, at Fair Park, near the Birmingham Race Course, or elsewhere.)
• Funding college or trade school scholarships for Birmingham City Schools students with a "C" average or above. (Proposal set aside to fund pre-K programs)
• contributing $10 million per year into an economic development fund
• spending $15 million per year on streets and sidewalks, of which $9 million would be divided between the 9 council districts as "discretionary" funds.

In addition to the ordinance, Langford has made numerous other proposals since taking office:

• Sending Birmingham Department of Public Works crews out on a continuous 23 in 23 initiative to clean up neighborhood rights-of-way and remove trash, abandoned vehicles and overgrowth.
• Buying 15,000 XO laptops from the One Laptop Per Child foundation for Birmingham City Schools students in 1st through 8th grade.
• Demolishing Boutwell Auditorium and giving the site to the Birmingham Museum of Art for expansion.
• Demolishing Legion Field
• Demolishing the Birmingham Board of Education Building at Linn Park for redevelopment.
• Building an aquarium, perhaps as part of a major shopping mall.
• Creating a new Birmingham logo, featuring a magician's hat.
• Providing $5 million toward construction of an amphitheater at the Railroad Reservation Park.
• Lobbying the state legislature for a lottery or bingo game to support health care.
• Providing $1 million toward renovations at Bethel Baptist Church as part of a city-led revitalization of Collegeville.
• Fair Park Redevelopment: Providing funds for about half of a $90 million "Olympic-style village" at Five Points West, including a high-rise residential complex, artificial lakes, a swimming facility and renovations to the Birmingham International Raceway. (Raceway was later demolished as part of the redevelopment)
• Contributing $20 million toward the expansion of Children's Hospital.
• Creating a $5 million short-term loan program for business expansion.
• Portable laptop labs at city high schools.
• A girl's fast-pitch softball facility.
• Demolishing nearly 1,500 dilapidated houses across the city, selling the scrap metal salvaged, and offering the lots to developers.
• Providing houses in the city for those bought out by the Birmingham International Airport's noise abatement program.
• Bidding for the 2020 Olympic Games.
• Renaming the Birmingham International Airport for Fred Shuttlesworth. The mayor's proposal included a suggested new logo.
• Constructing a new municipal center on the Trinity Steel site as part of a $65 million revitalization of the Titusville community.
• Incarcerating parents of repeat curfew offenders.
• Selling wood waste to an ethanol plant in exchange for fuel, in cooperation with Hoover and Bessemer.
• Outfitting all publicly-owned vehicles with centrally-linked GPS receivers to monitor their usage.
• Proposing a state law to allow the city to seize vehicles in which any occupant is found to be illegally carrying a firearm.
• Leasing, instead of purchasing, all 2,200 city vehicles.
• Creating a Civil Rights Trail.
• Building fountains and plazas in Pratt City, Five Points West, North Birmingham, Roebuck and two fountains downtown.
• Repaving all 1,100 miles of city streets beginning with a 3-year project to repave 500 miles over three years by splitting $16 million per year between every paving company in the city. (Later bid out and awarded to one company, starting with downtown paving)
• Having the city partner with Cooper Green Mercy Hospital to provide discounted prescription drugs to low-income residents at a cost of $1.3 million per year.
• Joining with Jefferson County to purchase Century Plaza and convert it into a senior citizens' recreation center.
• Painting Five Points South red as part of a comprehensive public works project to spruce up the district in preparation for the PapaJohns.com Bowl.
• Hiring 13-year-old Raven Hatcher as a consultant to the the Birmingham Parks & Recreation Board under a $10,000 contract.
• Increasing annual contributions to the Birmingham Zoo from $500,000 to $2 million and refunding sales taxes collected there by the city to support development of the "Trails of Africa" exhibit and a possible future 1 million gallon aquarium.
• Developing pre-kindergarten programs at the former Elyton School and Banks Middle School, giving the Powell School building to the private Cornerstone School, and selling the old Carver High School site in Collegeville for redevelopment as housing.

References

• Bryant, Joseph D. (December 9, 2007) "Birmingham Mayor Larry Langford has gotten major projects under way in first month in office." Birmingham News
• Bryant, Joseph D. (December 4, 2007) "Birmingham City Council approves sales tax, business license fee increases." Birmingham News
• Wright, Barnett (April 23, 2006) "Langford's full of ideas, both big and small." Birmingham News
• Bryant, Joseph D. (September 21, 2007) "Idea man Langford a champion for change." Birmingham News
• Spencer, Thomas (December 2, 2008) "Birmingham Mayor Larry Langford full of contrasts." Birmingham News