Birmingham Association votes to relocate

Birmingham Association votes to relocate

The executive board of Birmingham Baptist Association (BBA) voted Nov. 3 to sell its property to the Birmingham Jefferson Convention Complex for $1.25 million.

With the closing date set for March 1, 2004, BBA officials will lease the building for $10 a month until Dec. 31, 2004, or a new location is secured, whichever comes first.

A BBA task force working on the possibility of selling property since February helped bring BBA a profit, even after discounting all previous monies spent on buildings and facilities.

BBA officials spend $300,000 on its first building in 1959. The Alabama Baptist State Convention provided $150,000 for inclusion of the University of Alabama at Birmingham (UAB) student center, and more parking space was purchased two years later for $95,000.

When BBA relocated and the student center was moved on campus at UAB, BBA returned the $150,000 provided by the state convention and sold the property for $400,000.

The current location was purchased for $125,000 and renovated for $345,000.

 To date, $1,015,000 has been spent by BBA on facilities.

With the first sale of $400,000 and the most recent sale of $1.25 million, BBA will make $635,000 profit from property purchases and sales.

Also during the Nov. 3 meeting, the BBA executive board approved the 2004 budget of $812,945. This is $133,990 less than the 2003 and includes elimination of staff. Two full-time positions – BBA receptionist/administrative assistant and the UAB Baptist Campus Ministries administrative assistant- were cut. Supplemental income provided for the M-Power executive director and the chaplain for the Hong Kong University were also eliminated.

(TAB)