Plan to Bring Culver's, Others to Tuscaloosa Advancing Again

A developer's plan to bring Culver's and other new-to-market restaurants or retailers to a currently residential part of Tuscaloosa is advancing again after it was tabled indefinitely earlier this year.

As the Thread first reported, District 7 city councilman Cassius Lanier has been working with two teams of developers on plans to tear down two dozen homes in the Springbrook neighborhood and replace them with a shopping center filled with new-to-market restaurants and retailers.

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The first developers pitching Springbrook Commons backed out, but a second group - the Delaney Property Group headquartered in Mobile - has picked up the torch and is working with Lanier and the council to revive the idea.

They've been seeking a $5.75 million tax incentive package from the city of Tuscaloosa, but that request was tabled indefinitely in January as Delaney took a closer look at the package's commitments.

On Tuesday, Michael Delaney was back at City Hall to revive the discussions, but the amendments to the deal first pitched to the council are too different from the original proposal to pick up where they left off. Delaney, his investors, and developers will have to draft a new proposed incentive agreement, advertise it in local publications, and present it to the Tuscaloosa City Council for a fresh vote going forward.

Delaney said the original proposal included drawing six new-to-market tenants before his team could receive tax rebates from the city. He wants to reduce that number to three. The first agreement also guaranteed 200 or more employees at businesses within Springbrook Commons, and Delaney said the amended package will have a lower number.

In an interview with the Thread, Lanier said he still expects the proposal to come back before the full council quickly, and he hopes it passes and spurs fresh development in District 7.

"I want to get all the information in one room so everybody can have the same understanding of this project so we can go ahead and vote and decide whether we're going forward or not," Lanier said during the Tuesday meeting. "My whole thing is trying to bring something new to District 7."

When Springbrook Commons was first announced, Lanier teased three tenants it was meant to draw - Culver's, Golden Corral, and Dutch Bros - but he said Wednesday that of those, only Culver's is still expected for this project, and the other tenants will be places which have not yet been revealed.

Delaney was also confident that his Mobile-based team was the right group for the job.

"I like this town, and we do projects all over the state similar to this," he said. "We're performers, and we're closers. We get things done, and most people are happy."

Lanier told the Thread he wants to expedite getting the matter before the council again, and a vote on the Springbrook incentives could come in April or May.

For more exclusive coverage of restaurant and retail development in West Alabama, stay connected to the Tuscaloosa Thread.