Northport residents up in arms on potential sale of beloved community center & park

NORTHPORT, Ala. (WBRC) - A prime piece of real estate in Northport is at the center of attention after city leaders are looking at possibly selling it for retail purposes.

Just the thought of it isn’t sitting well with some of the locals.

The area in question is about 3.5 acres and it sits at the corner of Lurleen B. Wallace Boulevard and Park Street.

On Monday night, the Northport City Council voted NOT to sell the property, but to explore opportunities with a developer. In short, give the developer 180 days to present ideas to see if they’re acceptable to the city.

One idea being tossed around is a small retail section which may include a Starbucks, according to city leaders. Some neighbors prefer to keep it as it is and leave the property alone.

“With the green space we have right now, we have an opportunity to beautify our gateway areas. I can capture people as they’re headed to Tuscaloosa or a football game, after they’ve stayed in some of our areas and it seems like a great idea, but we’re also not going to compromise the integrity of Northport,” said District 1 Northport City Councilwoman Christy BoBo.

“The park - we don’t have many green spaces in the middle of Northport. The little park is great for our grandkids to come over here,” said Julie Kenny, who lives nearby.

Locals say 8 years ago, they stopped a project that would have allowed a Krispy Kreme to locate on the same property.

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