Measure To Rename Tuscaloosa Bridge For Stan Pate's Father Stalls

Editor's Note: This story has been updated with the latest developments in the legislative process for this resolution after it crossed over to the House of Representatives.

TUSCALOOSA, AL — A Senate resolution to rename an interstate bridge in Tuscaloosa for the father of developer Stan Pate has stalled once again before making it to the floor of the House of Representatives for a vote.

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The bill is sponsored by State Sen. Gerald Allen, a Republican from Tuscaloosa, and seeks to rename the Interstate 20/59 bridge that spans McFarland Boulevard to the Luther Stancel Pate III Memorial Bridge. The bridge, which features the controversial red arches, is within eyeshot of the McFarland Mall property owned by Pate.

Senate Joint Resolution 12 received a favorable report from the Senate Rules Committee on Tuesday, before crossing over to the House. It failed to get consideration among the resolutions for the House, before lawmakers adjourned until Tuesday, April 11.

The resolution is indeed a polarizing one, with the Chamber of Commerce of West Alabama pushing back against it, while on the flip-side, west Alabama lawmakers — for the most part — have been tight-lipped when it comes to publicly criticizing the measure.

Pate's father was a farmer in Buhl and was killed in a vehicle accident at Rice Mine Road and McFarland Boulevard on the evening of June 14, 1968. He was 31 years old.

As Patch reported in the first installment of its ongoing four-part profile series about Pate, this proved one of the most important formative experiences of his life, as the controversial developer has discussed at length on different occasions the impact his father had on his life.

"When you're almost 10 years old, you love your parents and looking back on my Dad every time that I talk about him in a situation like this, I smile," Pate told me last week. "You're looking at it through the perspective of 10-year-old eyes. Good dads, they walk on water, and mine did in my eyes and still does."

Pate said he never asked for the bridge to be renamed for his father, but said it would be an honor to see him memorialized in such a way. Still, this hasn't stopped vocal opposition to the measure, particularly from other local business leaders.

Indeed, the Chamber of Commerce of West Alabama's Board of Directors passed a resolution in late March encouraging the Tuscaloosa County legislative delegation to seek input from members of the community before renaming any infrastructure such as roads and bridges.

Of the entire delegation, State Rep. Curtis Travis, D-Tuscaloosa, was the only member who spoke out in vocal support of the resolution. Travis is a longtime friend of Pate's, which makes his vocal support more understandable when speaking to his peers on background about the matter.

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