YOUR SOURCE OF NEWS IN SELMA AND DALLAS COUNTY, ALABAMA April 4, 2019 | Volume 4, Issue 11
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Mark’s Mart opens Tuscaloosa location BY BRAD FISHER Selma Sun Staff
One of Selma’s best-known businesses has branched out to Tuscaloosa, and they have become the talk of the town. Mark’s Mart opened March 20 in Northport, a city of 25,000 just across the Black Warrior River from Tuscaloosa. The store is located in a former turn-of-the-century dairy barn on 5th Street, beneath a crimson railroad bridge emblazoned with Roll Tide. Owner Rodney King said he runs between the Selma and Northport stores, and his son Jacob and Mitchell Lewis manage the Northport location. On a recent Saturday, the store was so full that patrons were shoulder to shoulder at refrigerator cases filled with
delicacies known to Selma residents – stuffed pork chops, Angus beef, twice-baked potatoes, fried mushrooms and, of course, chicken swirls. Social media feeds for Tuscaloosa/Northport residents have been taken over with photos of people holding up their chicken swirls and cheese sticks as if they were trophies. Tracy Cooper of Northport proudly showed off her chicken swirls and stuffed mushrooms, both of which came highly recommended by her Facebook friends. “I live nearby, so I decided to stop by and see what all the excitement is about,” she said as she stood in the checkout line. King said he is happy that the Tuscaloosa community seems
Jacob and Rodney King of Selma have branched out with a new Mark's Mart in Northport. The store has been the talk of the town since it opened on March 20. excited about Mark’s Mart, because Tuscaloosa and Selma have different food cultures. “Tuscaloosa has many restaurants, but in Black Belt little towns, you build your own entertainment,” he said. “In Selma, we have a cook-out culture.” In Selma or Tuscaloosa/ Northport, King said the typical Mark’s Mart customer is “somebody who wants nice, restaurant-quality food to do at home that they can fix easily in 30 minutes.” King said Tuscaloosa/ Northport is a “logical first choice” for a second location. “We have a pretty big customer base from Tuscaloosa and surrounding area,” he said. “A lot of people are familiar with Mark’s Mart. We even had people driving down from this area.” Perhaps because The University of Alabama is located in Tuscaloosa, King said there are many family and social connections between the two areas.
That’s the case for Brandt LaPish of Tuscaloosa. Saturday was her first time in the Northport store, but she said she has friends from Selma who regularly bring meats and appetizers from the Selma store for gatherings in Tuscaloosa. LaPish said she and her husband have even driven to Selma to pick up some special items. King said the new store has been in the works for several years, but family issues delayed the opening. “I’ve lost a family member every year for the last five years,” he said. His brother, Mark, for whom the store is named, passed away, as did his brother, Gary, and his parents. But now the Northport store is open, and King said he is happy to be working with his son to make both stores successful. “I’m happy that our Tuscaloosa customers are so patient, because we’ve been so busy they sometimes have to wait for the cooler to be restocked,” he said.
Shoppers are thrilled with the new market.
$5M renovation of St. James Hotel to begin City eyes partnerships with other Water Avenue owners for similar renovations
The St. James Hotel has a new owner and plans to become a boutique Hilton hotel. BY CINDY FISHER Selma Sun Staff
Renovation can now begin on the historic St. James Hotel so the Water Avenue proper-
ty can once again become an economic engine for downtown Selma. The city of Selma and developer Jim Lewis confirmed Monday morning that the hotel on Water
Avenue has sold for $400,000. The building has sat idle since closing in April 2017. Lewis’ company, Rhaglan Hospitality, plans a $5 million renovation of the property. The hotel
will be operated as a Hilton as part of their lifestyle boutique brand. Rhaglan has a loan in place, and he received state historic tax credits. He has also applied for federal historic tax credits.
Rhaglan this week made a new request to the city of Selma for a revenue sharing agreement to help offset some recently discovered and unexpected renovation. The City Council is expected to hold a special called meeting this week to discuss the last-minute request. Mayor Darrio Melton said his administration decided to close the St. James Hotel after seeing that the city was spending almost $1 million a year to maintain it. The city tried operating it with planning officials in charge, but their lack of hospitality experience made the effort unsuccessful, Melton said. “We trust Rhaglan’s expertise and have faith in them” to run the St. James Hotel successfully, he said. Lewis’ Rhaglan has a track record of redeveloping old hotels to their former glory, including the Redmont Hotel in downtown Birmingham. Lewis has been trying to buy the St. James Hotel for two and a half years. He estimates the new version will open by the end of the year. Selma officials hope the movement to renovate the St. James Hotel will be a catalyst to more redevelopment and improvements on Water
Avenue, which has several properties that overlook the Alabama River. Melton said he would like to talk to other property owners along the corridor about public/ private partnerships to renovate their properties to make them more attractive. The history of the St. James Hotel will certainly be a draw. The hotel is named after legendary outlaw Jesse James, who reportedly stayed there more than a century ago. Lewis said today’s St. James Hotel will be a full-service Hilton with more than 40 rooms. It will offer food and beverage service for the rooms, and lunch and dinner will be served every day in the restaurant. Breakfast will be served in the outside courtyard and perhaps a back patio. They also plan to create meeting space for banquets and other events. Lewis said in a previous interview that his firm is “enamored with Selma,” and they are looking at other “charming” properties for similar renovation. “I’m super excited about it and can’t wait to get open,” Lewis said. “We look at this as a pivotal project and would like to do more in Selma.”
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