MOBILE, Ala. (WKRG) — At the second community meeting for the Africatown Welcome Center, the City of Mobile’s design team revealed three design options for the future building.
Each of the three options has its own name that speaks to the design. They are Monument, Town, and Connection.
Cleon Jones said, “In my opinion, it should have happened years ago, but we’re so happy that it’s happening now.”
Jones, an MLB great and Mobile native, said that out of the three options, he likes Connection the most.
“It has all the features that we’ve been talking about for the last 10 years and it depicts the property as it lies, you know, on the hill and it does wonderful for that particular area, and it’s right across from the cemetery, so the way I see it, the community is going to be proud of this particular project,” said Jones.
Andy, one of the design team lead members, said, “Every concept you’re going to see tonight has basically the same building program, it’s going to have the same spaces”
You can see the differences in each design.
Option one, Monument, is a large building with glass walls letting in natural light.
Option two, Town, features what looks like shotgun-style houses connected by one roof.
Option three, Connection, is made up of two wings connected by a glass walkway.
Jireh Gable said, “I love the connection exterior because of the way it presents the entrance. The entranceway is very opening, welcome, and it’s not cluttered, it has a breathing space.”
The design team also released the results of the feedback from the first meeting. Some of the most asked-for items include a water feature, warm and inviting materials and a building that dominates the site.
Anyone who wasn’t able to make the meeting can still take the survey to give feedback. It’s open until June 4.
Gable said, “I’m very excited to see what everyone else thinks, how we pull together. The communication is key here, so we want to see that definitely reflect in meeting number three.”
There are still two more meetings on the way.
At the third meeting, the community is expected to look at the design, nearly halfway complete at this point, and give feedback. By the fourth meeting, the design team hopes to show the community the final rendering of the Africatown Welcome Center. The City of Mobile hopes to break ground before the end of 2023.
