Birmingham to Transform Historic School into Senior Housing

Birmingham plans to transform the historic Graymont School, a landmark in the city's desegregation history, into affordable housing for seniors.

The $27 million renovation project for the former Graymont School, located across from Legion Field, is a significant part of the neighborhood's redevelopment efforts.

Last week, the city council’s budget and finance committee approved a proposal to lease the city-owned building to developers for 30 years at $1 per year. The developers plan to create 101 rental units for seniors. If the plan is approved by the full council, the city will also contribute $3.5 million in funding to support the project.

“The opportunity to build more single-family homes and repurpose space goes to the heart of neighborhood revitalization,” Mayor Randall Woodfin told AL.com on Wednesday. “We’re grateful for this partnership and relationship, not only with HUD but with our local community, and the chance to make a positive impact that could change lives for the better.”

Built in 1908, Graymont School served as an elementary school until 1989 and was the first integrated school in Birmingham.

Cory Stallworth, Birmingham’s senior deputy director of community development, explained to the council committee last week that the exterior of the building will be preserved while the interior will be fully renovated to include new elevators and walls.

“We’ll preserve that building,” Stallworth said, “but a new building will be constructed alongside it that will honor the neighborhood's architectural elements while offering a modern complement to its rich history.”

In 1963, Birmingham resident James Armstrong, a Black barber, sued the board of education to enroll his sons, Dwight and Floyd Armstrong, in Graymont School. The school grounds were a scene of law enforcement presence, protests against integration, and civil rights activism. The Armstrong boys were escorted into the school by their father and the Rev. Fred Shuttlesworth, just five days before the Sixteenth Street Baptist Church bombing that killed four girls.

The redevelopment of Graymont School is a key component of the city's revitalization efforts, funded by the federal Choice Neighborhoods grant awarded in July 2023.

City leaders said the Choice Grant would leverage a $294 million investment in the Graymont, Smithfield, and College Hills neighborhoods, providing 1,000 subsidized, affordable, and market-value homes, and replacing the 900 units at Smithfield Court.

Approximately 50 apartments will be built inside the historic Graymont School, with additional homes constructed in the new building. The first floor of the existing building will house a child early learning center, replacing similar services formerly provided by the Jefferson County Committee for Economic Opportunity (JCCEO), which dissolved in late 2021.

“As the first of many exciting developments planned to implement the HUD Choice Neighborhood grant, this project addresses critical needs for families and seniors, brings new life to an important structure, and paves the way to redevelop the Smithfield Court site,” Councilwoman Carol Clarke, whose district includes the school, told AL.com on Friday. “All of the planned investments as part of this grant will serve as a much-needed revitalization catalyst for the entire area.”

The project will be developed by Integral Partners and Rule Enterprises, both based in Atlanta. Integral also manages Park Place downtown.

“This development really caught HUD’s attention because it is an intergenerational development,” Stallworth told the committee, recalling the city’s application for the highly competitive grant. “They were pleased to see this as our first phase of development for Choice.”

Funding for the project will include the city’s $3.5 million in ARPA funds, support from the Housing Authority of the Birmingham District, and additional city funds as the project progresses. Developers will also seek assistance from the Alabama Housing Finance Authority.

“We are seeking to subsidize the project to bring down rent costs,” Stallworth said.

“We committed to providing funding for each development as it comes online, using a mix of HUD Choice Neighborhood funding, city funding, housing authority funding, and state assistance, to make these developments available.”

Stallworth emphasized the importance of preserving Graymont School due to its historical significance.