What we are working on
Big job. Broken into pieces.
Cardiff has real problems we can fix, and a few we have to stay ahead of. Some of this is small. Some of it is big. None of it gets done all at once, and none of it gets done alone.
This page lays out every track we are working on, side by side. Some pieces are bigger because they take more work. Some are smaller because they are quick wins. Each one has a link out to the actual law, agency, or organization behind it, so you can read the how and why for yourself.
League of Municipalities — emailed, waiting
Probate Court — emailed, waiting
Tax Assessor — emailed, waiting
Reinstatement — open
Track 0 · Unlocks Everything
In motion
🏛️
Get Cardiff's government working again
Most of what we want to do — fix the road, protect the creek, keep out data centers, clean up empty lots — only works if Cardiff has a working town government. Alabama law has a clear path for restarting a dormant town. It runs through the Jefferson County Probate Court.
What we need
A majority of Cardiff taxpayers sign a petition. The judge reviews it, reinstates the town, and appoints a mayor and council.
Who we are talking to
Alabama League of Municipalities, Jefferson County Probate Court, and the County Tax Assessor. All three contacted. Waiting on replies.
Track 7 · Identity
Letter ready
📬
Put Cardiff back on the map
Mail addressed to Cardiff goes through another town's zip code. Online forms do not recognize us. A zip code and a post office are two different things — we can ask the U.S. Postal Service to recognize Cardiff as a city name without building a post office. Sandy Springs, Georgia did this in 2025. We can too.
Track 1 · Highest Stakes
Get ahead of it
🛡️
Keep data centers and private equity out
A 700-acre data center was just proposed in Bessemer that would use up to 2 million gallons of water a day. Cardiff sits on Five Mile Creek, which makes our land a target for the same kind of buyer. Once a zoning change goes through, it is very hard to undo.
The plan: get protective rules in place before anyone comes knocking. No giant water users without a public vote and 60 days notice. No secret deals with developers. Work with the Freshwater Land Trust to keep creekside land in permanent conservation.
Track 2 · Daily Pain
Active
🛣️
Fix Lynn's Crossing Road
The road is washed out, full of storm debris, and torn up by logging trucks. When trains block the crossing, this is our only way out. Going over the hill adds 10 to 15 minutes to any trip.
The county is supposed to maintain it. We are going to make sure they do, and apply for Rebuild Alabama money to actually pave it.
Track 2c · Quick Win
Waiting
🚛
Put a weight limit on Lynn's Crossing
Alabama law lets a town post weight limits on its roads. We cannot ban trucks. We can keep 80,000-pound logging trucks off a road that was not built for them. This is one of the first things a new council can do.
Track 3 · Cleanup
Records first
🧹
Hold neglected property owners accountable
Some Cardiff land belongs to people who do not live here and do not keep it up. Overgrown lots, piled trash, abandoned buildings, fire risk. Alabama law gives a working town real tools for this. We do it by the book, the same rules for everybody.
- Step one: get the parcel list from the Tax Assessor (waiting on this)
- Step two: document every problem lot with photos and dates
- Step three: certified-mail notice, then cleanup, then a lien on the property
Track 6 · Risk
Free help available
🔥
Cut the wildfire risk
Years of downed trees and brush have piled up around Cardiff. No single owner is going to clear the whole watershed. The Alabama Forestry Commission does free wildfire-risk assessments for small towns, and there is grant money for fuel reduction if we have a plan on file.
Track 5 · Long Game
Need reinstatement
🪦
Bring the cemetery home, get the road fixed
Brookside annexed a strip of land that crosses Lynn's Crossing Road and sits right on top of the Cardiff Cemetery. They are not maintaining the road or the cemetery, and the county will not pave through a band that belongs to another town.
If Brookside releases that strip, the county can pave the road end to end, and Cardiff can annex the cemetery so those families come home. This is not a fight — it is a conversation that costs Brookside nothing and fixes a real problem for everyone.