Several interested if Birmingham-Southern College sells nearly 200-acre campus, lawmaker says

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"Several institutions" are interested in buying the nearly 200 acres of property where the Birmingham-Southern College campus is situated if the school, which announced Tuesday it will close May 31, puts it up for sale, according to a state lawmaker who has been one of the college's leading champions.

Rep. Juandalynn Givan, D-Birmingham, who fought to get the school a loan through the Legislature, did not name the potential suitors.

She said she was concerned how the 192-acre campus would impact the surrounding Bush Hills community if the property becomes vacant.

"The thing with Birmingham-Southern is it's different because Birmingham-Southern sits properly within a residential community. That is a real big difference. You're looking at almost [200] acres, it takes up almost half of the Bush Hills community," she said. "So that's a problem that we're going to have to figure out ..."

But Givan said the property has cultivated interest from myriad entities.

"If Birmingham-Southern vacates, I do believe that somebody will be there to chop it up and buy it," she said. "I just know there are several institutions that are interested, I do know that."

AL.com asked a UAB spokesman if the university was interested in acquiring the Birmingham-Southern property but did not hear back before publication.

Birmingham-Southern's board of trustees voted Monday to close the school effective May 31, citing the failure to secure a loan.

Throughout last year's legislative session, leaders worked with local and state officials to stave off closure -- and recruit new students. Last April, Birmingham-Southern announced plans to keep the college open, citing "encouraging" news from the legislature.

Weeks later, Gov. Kay Ivey signed a bill that would create a new loan program for struggling public and private universities. The program would provide just enough money, $30 million, to keep the school running.

But by the fall, school officials and lawmakers were back at square one.

Sen. Rodger Smitherman, D-Birmingham, who called the college's imminent closure a "travesty," said he was unsure of the fate of the campus but remained optimistic that Birmingham-Southern could reemerge at the property.

"I still hold out hope that we still have a school there," he said. "I even hold out hope that we have Birmingham-Southern, if it has to come back brand new and reopen. I'm not giving up hope."

Smitherman also held out hope that the college could be saved.

"We still have a bill," he said. "I think it could [be voted on], but it just depends on a lot of dynamics....The positive side of it is that we do have a criteria set up."

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