Thank you ST Bunn!
The City of Tuscaloosa is excited to see the restoration of disaster damaged infrastructure work complete. The contractor, ST Bunn Construction, worked with the City of Tuscaloosa to complete this project well before the one year anniversary of the storm. While we realize that there are still areas of the City that will require infrastructure work, we are excited that the work that was a part of the FEMA response has been completed!
Boulevard Salon Reopens
March 6, 2012 – The Boulevard Salon (which was destroyed in the April 27th tornado) held a ribbon cutting ceremony Tuesday to show they are back in business on McFarland Blvd. Tuscaloosa Mayor Walt Maddox was among those who attended the ceremony and welcomed the salon back to the area. Boulevard Salon is located at 1387 McFarland Boulevard East in Tuscaloosa.
Full Moon BBQ Set to Reopen (al.com)
February 9, 2012 — Full Moon Bar-B-Que owner Brian Ahmed announced today that the restaurant, destroyed by the April 27, 2011, tornado, is set to reopen a dine-in location during the second week of June. Ahmed said the Tuscaloosa Full Moon restaurant will be at 15th Street and McFarland Boulevard in Tuscaloosa. It will have a large dining room where people can eat, lounge and watch games. “We are very excited,” Ahmed aid. “The store will be bigger and better.”
To read the rest of this al.com article, please click here.
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Tuscaloosa Community Comes Together to Rebuild - An Inside Look at the Family of Habitat’s 5th Tuscaloosa Home (By: Kerie Kerstetter)
On the afternoon of April 27th, 2011, Nicole Cammon and her fiancé Eddie Crispin were having a family cookout at their 32nd Avenue home in Tuscaloosa. Like many others that day, Nicole and her family had pushed the threats of severe weather to the back of their minds. Throughout springtime in Tuscaloosa, frequent tornado warnings never quite seem to follow through with the damage they forewarn. Yet the peace that Nicole and her family felt that day would soon be jolted.
The phone rang, and Nicole had just enough time to recognize her mother’s frantic voice before the power went out.
“All of the sudden everything went dark,” she remembers. “We walked outside, and that’s when we saw it coming.”
Please click here to read the rest of the story.
Habitat for Humanity dedicates ’14 for 14′ house, first inside Tuscaloosa city limits (al.com)
February 1, 2012 — Habitat for Humanity of Tuscaloosa dedicated its fifth house since the April 27 tornado and its first within the Tuscaloosa city limits in the Alberta community Wednesday.
Nicole Cammon and Eddie Crispin, who are engaged, opened up their new house on 7th Street East in the tornado recovery zone to family, friends, local officials and project sponsors.
To read the rest of the article at al.com, click here.
Families who lost homes get to go on shopping spree (tuscaloosanews.com)
January 23, 2012 — Christmas came in January for 17 children who lost their homes in the April tornado: The YMCA of Tuscaloosa gave the children and their families a total of $2,100 in Walmart gift cards on Sunday. The families gathered at the Tuscaloosa Walmart on Skyland Boulevard to use the gift cards on a shopping spree, buying everything from cellphone accessories to shoes to items for the home
To read entire article please click here
City of Tuscaloosa Tree Commission Hosts “Tree Give Away”
The City of Tuscaloosa Tree Commission will hold a special “Tree Give Away” in an effort to replace the many thousands of trees that were lost in the devastating tornado of April 27th, 2011. The free “baby” trees will be given away on Saturday, December 10th, 2011 at the Cherry Pavilion of Snow Hinton Park starting at 8:30 a.m. until all trees have been claimed.
To read the official press release please click here.
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New Gym Opens as One of First Businesses in Recovery Zone (Tuscaloosa News)
January 18, 2012 – Phillip Kinard built a fitness center late last year to help people get into shape. In doing so, he is also helping a tornado-ravaged neighborhood get back into shape. GFG Fitness on 13th Street East opened Jan. 1 and is one of the first new businesses built in the heart of Tuscaloosa’s tornado recovery zone. The fitness center represents a budding rebirth of sorts in an area where the path of the April 27 tornado is still seen in block after block of debris-cleared lots where homes and businesses once stood.
To read the entire Tuscaloosa News article please click here.
Your Way Furniture a Recovery Success
Your Way Furniture has proved a successful recovery story in the Alberta City area. After having the roof blown off their building and suffering over 1.25 million dollars in damage from the April 27th storm, Your Way Furniture relocated to a property in Cottondale for six weeks while they focused on the rebuilding process at their home site. Being able to work quickly with insurance, the store was able to have a contractor on site the very day after the storm and has since been able to come back even better than before.
“We’re in the finance business and we had to be open to service our customers,” stated Mr. John Little of Your Way Furniture. “We’re blessed to have been able to come back as quickly as we were,” he continued in reference to their remarkable June 20th reopening.
Open daily from 7:30am to 5:30pm, Your Way Furniture continues to serve the Alberta City area at 930 26th Ave East. The City of Tuscaloosa is excited for their success and excited about their continuing future.
Regions and Lenny’s Reopen after Ribbon Cutting Ceremonies
Two more Tuscaloosa businesses that were damaged by the April 27th tornado reopened last week and are ready for business.
The Regions Bank branch in front of University Mall, at the corner of McFarland Boulevard and Veterans Memorial Parkway, reopened this past Monday, November 14th, while Lenny’s Sub Shop, at 220 15th St. E., reopened on Thursday, November 17th.
Regions had been operating out of a full-service, portable branch, a converted RV with satellite connectivity, at the University Mall location since the storm. The branch has been completely restored and remodeled and is open for business just in time for this holiday season.
Lenny’s Sub Shop, one of the businesses on 15th Street heavily damaged in the April 27 tornado, held their ribbon-cutting ceremony a day after their grand reopening on Friday, November 18th. The Memphis, Tennessee-based sandwich shop chain offers dine-in,
catering and delivery service throughout the Tuscaloosa area. The sub shop’s regular operating hours will be Monday-Saturday from 10:30 a.m.-10 p.m. and Sunday from 10:30 a.m.-8 p.m.
Both businesses hosted ribbon cutting ceremonies that took place in the presence of Mayor Walt Maddox and other distinguished city officials. Those present were able to share in the joy of the businesses full return to the City of Tuscaloosa’s community.
Map of Recovery Success Stories
A visual celebration of Tuscaloosa businesses reopening after the devastating tornado of April 27, 2011. Click on the placeholders to see pictures of businesses moving forward!
- Blue - Repair Permit Issued
- Green - Land Development Permit Issued
View Recovery Success Stories in a larger map
The map below shows where commercial repair permits have been issued. As of September 19, 2011, the City of Tuscaloosa has issued 200 commercial repair permits in the tornado affected area. If you are searching for a particular address, permit number or business, use the search tool!
View Commercial Repair Permits Issued in Tuscaloosa in a full screen map
This is not a complete list of commercial businesses that have received repair or land development permits in the City of Tuscaloosa. We will continue to update the list and map regularly.
