re: Alabama should play their yearly lower tier FCS opponents at the new Birmingham stadium.

I don’t know—you tell me! Did you park on the street? Pay $25 to park at Top Golf or one of the local churches? Wander back into one of the shady neighborhoods surrounding the stadium? At the five events I’ve been to (two UAB games, B’ham Bowl, USFL game, and a Legion game) I’ve done all three. Not once have I parked in the lot or garage I planned to when I left—it’s always been full or “reserved” or simply inaccessible. And I’ve stopped going to events there as a result.

You know why every other modern stadium is surrounded by a giant parking lot? Because you want more people at the games than those who live within walking distance, especially in a city with zero public transit, like Birmingham. If you make it too hard for that Mountain Brook money to get to the events, then they will just stay home, and everyone suffers. I get that the city is still pissed at the OTM communities for pulling the economic rug out from under the city and refusing to join in any kind of unified city-county government. But unnecessarily antagonizing them by refusing to make them welcome at either Regions Field or Protective Stadium is just counter-productive. Build a parking lot or light rail up 280 and along US-31 and Highway 11. Or continue to suffer from embarrassing attendance like the UAB, USFL and Legion games. And have your shiny new stadium turn into a money-draining white elephant.