DECATUR, Ala. (WHNT) — A piece of history will soon be gone from a historic black community.
Decatur city leaders have decided that Al’s Grocery in Old Town will be demolished.
Al’s is the last remaining structure from Decatur’s urban renewal project in the 1970s on Vine Street.
“It means so much to so many people in the community from a historical perspective,” said Councilman Billy Jackson. “Just a range of different reasons why this building means so much.”
But the city says it’s time for the iconic grocery store to be demolished.
In August, Jackson, whose district includes Old Town, asked fellow council members for 90 days to allow the owner Al Robinson, the time to bring Al’s back to life. Robinson failed to come up with a plan to save the building.
“I can’t make all of the decisions by myself, so I really needed the help of the community, I need the help of the city council to come up with the right decision,” Robinson said.
Robinson and his wife operated the store for decades until its closure in 2009, but the building has seen better days and has been condemned by the city.
Al’s Grocery was a part of a wave of black-owned businesses to open on Vine Street as far back as the 1920s. Neighbors told News 19 that Al’s still has a deeper meaning as businesses need to remain on Vine Street.
“Al’s has been here and I’ve been running down up on these streets for 37 years and I couldn’t imagine Vine Street without Al’s Grocery,” Terrence Atkins said.
Atkins says that black-owned businesses should remain in Old Town.
It’s a staple in the community because North Decatur is a food desert or a community grocery store,” Atkins said. “So, if it’s not going to be an Al’s Grocery store here, we need something.”
Robinson still has ownership of the land. City leaders gave him 30 days to try and find a buyer.
