Legendary Tuscaloosa City Council President Kip Tyner Dies at 70

Tuscaloosa City Council President Kip Tyner, the District 5 councilman who spent nearly three decades representing Alberta and became the public face of its recovery from the 2011 tornado, has died at the age of 70.

The city confirmed the sad news in a Friday afternoon press release. Tyner was first elected to the council in 1997 and had served as its president since 2021.

He was hospitalized at DCH Regional Medical Center for about a week last month after a fall at home, and told supporters afterward that doctors had found internal bleeding and two ulcers.

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Before and during his time in office, Tyner was a fixture in local media, hosting the television program "Great Day Tuscaloosa."

His district took the worst of the EF-4 tornado that tore through Tuscaloosa on April 27, 2011, and destroyed roughly 60 percent of Alberta. Tyner spent the rest of his career pushing to rebuild it, with triumphs including the Alberta School of Performing Arts, a whole neighborhood of Habitat for Humanity homes and much more erected from the rubble.

He did so while fighting cancer, a tricky kind of multiple myeloma that had him extremely sick in 2012 and 2013.

At a groundbreaking of the expansion of his beloved Jaycee Park and the Tuscaloosa Tennis Center in 2024, Tyner recalled heading to Arkansas for treatment in the aftermath of the storm.

"I was fixing to head out to Arkansas for a long, almost one-year battle and all I could think about, when I was in Little Rock during some of those terrible, terrible days, was days like today, because I had to get better," he said then, in tears. "I've got to beat this stuff, and I've got to get back home, because we have so much more work to do for Alberta."

In a comeback that seemed unlikely at the time, Tyner did beat the cancer and returned to serve on and eventually lead the city council. He became the longest-serving councilman in its history, at least according to research by the Tuscaloosa Thread.

Local leaders mourned his death Friday.

“My heart is heavy today as we mourn the loss of a truly consequential public servant,” Mayor Walt Maddox said. “Council President Tyner was a steadfast and lifelong champion for Alberta, whose unwavering commitment shaped the community in profound and lasting ways. Following the catastrophic April 27, 2011 tornado which devastated 65% of Alberta, Mr. Tyner emerged as the driving force in the rebuilding and revitalization of his district. The Alberta we know today, and the promising future it is poised to embrace, stand as a testament to his tireless service, exceptional vision, and lifelong devotion to the people he represented. Mr. Tyner’s impact will be felt for generations. We are deeply grateful for his leadership."

Councilor Tyner was a Tuscaloosa native and a graduate of Tuscaloosa High School and the University of Alabama, where he earned a degree in Journalism, the city said.

“The passing of Councilor Tyner is met with a heavy heart but fond memories of the leadership and dedication that he has contributed to District 5 and the City of Tuscaloosa as our Council President,” District 2 Councilor Raevan Howard said. “His leadership and accomplishments in District 5 will live on for generations to come. He was not just a community leader, but he was a friend to everyone he met and wanted the best for all of Tuscaloosa. Council President Kip Tyner will always be remembered in our hearts and community.”

Just in the recent past, Tyner championed the $11 million expansion of the Tuscaloosa Tennis Center at Jaycee Park, the $4 million Chevron and food court development on University Boulevard, and the University Boulevard East expansion and streetscape project, which the city said this week is 75 percent complete.

That last one was personal. At its groundbreaking, Tyner said he had watched people walk in ditches along that road his whole life. His own brother was killed crossing a street in Alberta in 2024.

"This is going to be something I've only dreamed about and now it's reality," he said.

In May, he successfully pushed the city to keep the Gateway Learning Center in Alberta open after constituents objected to a plan to close it.

Mayor Walt Maddox has ordered City flags to be lowered to half-mast in honor of Councilor Tyner. Memorial arrangements will be shared soon. The thoughts of the Tuscaloosa Thread staff are with all who knew and loved President Tyner - Kip - who was a friend to so many.

For more coverage of City Hall and other news around West Alabama, stay connected to the Tuscaloosa Thread.