Here's what's going on

Camp Bessemer

The Bessemer City Council is running at full speed trying to make sure that Camp Bessemer takes place this year. A "hiccup" has caused a re-do in the process of awarding Camp Bessemer to an entity that will carry out the program. At both the City Council meeting and a Camp Bessemer committee meeting yesterday, new dates were discussed for submitting proposals and those are expected to be approved by the full council in a special called meeting.

Expect the RFP to be re-issued later this week...and the process begins again.

Here's a neat article about one aspect of 2010 Camp Bessemer.

Photo from that article

Bessemer Health Center

According to the Birmingham News (not yet online) the Bessemer Health Center, located at 2201 Arlington Avenue, will close. Services offered there will be relocated to a new clinic in Midfield. The consolidated clinic will take the place of the Ensley, West End and Bessemer clinics.

Construction of the new clinic, to be located on Bessemer Super Highway, won't start until 2012, so the Bessemer Clinic will not close anytime soon. Hopefully Jefferson County, or Bessemer, can come up with a use for the facility and it won't become just another vacant building.

After all, the south side of Bessemer is becoming a hot spot, what with new restaurants and a new DHR building in the business section, and a new push for Historic Neighborhood status for the residential section, and a somewhat renewed hope for saving Arlington School. (That link it to an old article with pics of the school, not the new info.)


Crime

As reported here earlier, Bessemer Police are implementing a new "zero policy" policy on crime. Residents might notice increased patrols and jailers might notice more mouths to feed.

Police Captain Mike Roper said, "We will fill the jail to capacity."

Police have already increased their presence in the city's parks, and we look forward to seeing more cops in the neighborhoods.

My only wish is that police in our area would park their car and walk around the block on occasion. From experience, I can tell them that you see a lot more when you are walking down the street than you do when you are driving down the street. This is something we have suggested for the past five years (since I ran for city council). Someday...

PetSmart

Shoppers at Colonial Promenade Tannehill may have noticed some construction going on. PetSmart will be opening a store later this summer.

Still on the wish list: a book store (Books-A-Million or Barnes and Noble), an office supply store, and an electronics store.

Historic Homes

Keep you calendar open for a home tour in historic Lakewood in late November. Details will be coming soon. Here's info from the 2006 tour of the area.