What's so special about Boutwell? Nothing.

Joey Kennedy | By Joey Kennedy | The Birmingham News
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on October 01, 2008 at 6:45 AM, updated October 01, 2008 at 6:47 AM
Boutwell Auditorium needs to come down. There. I've said it. All you historical preservation folks can have a field day with me. But Boutwell has long outlived its usefulness. It's a dump. The best use of Boutwell, or at least the ground Boutwell stands on, is to expand the Birmingham Museum of Art, one of the finest art museums in the Southeast and, unlike Boutwell, a real tourist draw.

Sure, the historical preservationists will be moaning about Boutwell's value as a historical building -- after all, it's where Strom Thurmond proved just how much of a racist he was; it's where some white men beat up Nat King Cole during a concert. What history! C'mon. Boutwell is a mess, it'll cost too much to fix, and the museum can use the property. (Read our editorial here.)

No, the museum shouldn't try to preserve Boutwell, its facade or even its foundation. Just tear it down and be done with it. Somebody can put up a plaque on the land that says Boutwell used to stand there, and thanks to some real vision, it's gone now. Good riddance. Now, let's go see some real history: those DaVinci sketches at the museum.