Pink House owners sue Homewood

Editor's Note: A previous version of this article stated the appeal gives the mayor and council an opportunity to settle before trial. According to City Attorney Mike Kendrick: "The BZA is the only entity who can determine if a variance is to be granted before an appeal.  After the appeal the court sits as the BZA and makes the decision." We apologize for the confusion.

The owners of the historic Pink House are filing a lawsuit against the city of Homewood.

The lawsuit is an appeal to the Jefferson County Circuit Court in response to the June 3 Board of Zoning Adjustments meeting, where owners Clayton and Rachel Mobley were denied their requests for two variances that would help them restore and live on the property. 

The first variance was to allow the placement of a swimming pool in the secondary front yard that is closest to Roseland Drive. The second was to increase the maximum building height from 35 feet to 46 feet so the Mobleys could construct an addition to the house where the Mobleys planned to live. The addition would be an attached house that faces Roseland Drive. The property is sloped, but if the property were flat, a variance would not have been needed to build the addition.

Their requests were denied in a 3-2 vote, and Rachel Mobley said in a June 11 Facebook post that they had two paths forward: to see if one of the “no” voters on the BZA would make a motion to reconsider the case and revote at the next meeting or to file an appeal in circuit court. On Thursday, the Mobleys announced they decided on the second option.

“The only way to file an appeal is to actually file a lawsuit,” Clayton said. “That’s not necessarily something we intended to do when we started all of this; however, it’s the next step forward. We don't harbor any ill will toward the BZA, City Council, mayor or any city official. This is just the next step forward to try to get something done.”

By filing an appeal, the Mobleys are getting their case in front of a judge, who will be selected at random. 

The house, which was built in the 1920s, is currently unlivable. Some parts of the ceiling are leaking or at risk of falling in. It’s in pretty bad detriment, Clayton said, but it can be restored. But in addition to preserving the historic aesthetic of the property, the Mobleys also said they want to create a desirable home with more space, function and modern comforts, such as central heating and air. 

“We believe that the careful plans that we have made are the best possible solution to restore the Pink House and the historic gardens while still providing a viable home for the property,” Rachel said. “Following the advice of city officials, we’ve already compromised and changed the plans with multiple revisions since December to help get it passed. At this point, we feel like we’re going in circles.”

When The Homewood Star first spoke with the Mobleys in November 2020, shortly after the couple purchased the house, they expressed excitement about their plans to restore the house and grow their family within its walls. The process hasn’t been what they expected, Clayton said.

“We knew that everyone cared about the property and that would bring complications, but we truly felt like no one wanted to have five houses on it, and everyone did want the Pink House to be restored,” he said. “The beginning of our planning process felt like everyone was all working together: us, the city and the community. Then each time we worked through a list of revisions that were requested, we’d find another hoop to jump through. Then once we felt like we’d jumped through all of the hoops, we were turned down.”

The Mobleys are motivated to keep pushing forward, though, because their dreams are tied to the Pink House, Rachel said.

“Our visions for our family are wrapped up in the magic of this place,” she said. “And this place has so much magic. … Fighting to keep the Pink House and its historic gardens intact, it’s just worth it.”

Rachel said those who want to show support for their effort can call or email their City Council representatives, share posts on Facebook or sign the online petition.

“We want everyone to know that we love the Pink House, but our current prospect isn’t secure,” Clayton said. “Unfortunately our voice was not enough at the BZA meeting, so now our best hope is that the community will rally even stronger and our elected officials will listen.”

The Mobleys released the following statement Thursday:

“In a spirit of transparency, optimism, and good faith, we, Rachel and Clayton Mobley, would like to release a statement regarding our plans for the Pink House property. 

While the Board of Zoning Adjustment may still, on its own initiative, make a motion at the next meeting to reconsider our variance requests, after consultation with the city of Homewood and our legal counsel, the most realistic next step available to us is to file an appeal to circuit court. This is, in effect, a lawsuit with the city of Homewood.  

While filing a lawsuit against the city of Homewood was not something we ever envisioned would be part of the planning process when we began this journey, this action is one of the only options left that would allow us to move forward with the plans we’ve carefully made for the Pink House property. Accordingly, we have filed the appeal with the circuit court. It’s important for the community to know that we harbor no ill will or resentment for the members of the BZA, the City Council, the Mayor or the city staff. We are simply very passionate about our dream to secure the Pink House’s future in a way that is also feasible for our family and the community.

We are confident that the plans we submitted for approval are the most reasonable, viable solution for this property, and we are resolute in our belief that these plans will be approved in circuit court. Given the overwhelming public support of our plans, we respectfully hope that the mayor and City Council will work with us toward a mutually acceptable settlement of the appeal, so that all parties can avoid the time, effort, and expense of a lawsuit. We would very much prefer to use that time, effort, and expense toward the restoration of the Pink House.

We recognize what a great responsibility it is to be the protectors of one of Homewood’s greatest historic treasures. It is because of this that we are continuing to champion this cause, and we are humbled and touched by the support we’ve received from our wonderful community. Thank you for all the many ways you’ve stood with us in solidarity. Your emails and phone calls voicing your concern to city officials have been critical in keeping our dream alive, and we ask you to keep doing so. Thank you, from the bottom of our hearts, for your agency.”

About the Pink House

In a statement from the Mobleys, they also included the following historic information about the Pink House.

Since 1921, the Pink House and its treasured secret garden – located on the corner of Roseland Drive and Edgewood Boulevard – has been a mainstay of the community and was the longtime home of two of Birmingham’s most loved and accomplished artists, Georges and Eleanor Bridges. The land was a wedding present from Eleanor’s father, Richard Massey, one of the 1871 founders of Birmingham and the man who coined it “The Magic City.” The main house served as a painters’ studio for Eleanor, who was Amelia Earhart’s roommate prior to moving to the Pink House, and the separate studio was Georges’ space for painting, pottery and sculpture, and where Georges executed Birmingham’s famous Brother Bryan statue now located in Five Points South. Brother Bryan was an outspoken supporter of civil rights and racial reconciliation, as well as a tireless supporter of the poor and homeless. After its beginning in 1940, the "Brother Bryan Mission" is still active in advocating for the poor and less fortunate. Together, Eleanor and Georges mentored hundreds of artists and impacted Birmingham through public works in the fields of religion, politics, art, theatre, and music. 

In the early 1940s, Bridges led a Birmingham Civic Art Movement, teaching unskilled and unemployed men how to carve stone benches for Hillman Hospital and sundials and water fountains for public parks. He hoped to enlist the support of a "Committee of 100" which could provide the means to fulfill his dreams of completing a monumental figure of the Roman goddess Diana for the space between the Jefferson County Courthouse and Birmingham Public Library and erecting a public art museum built entirely of stone. Eleanor was an officer of the Birmingham Beautification Board, the Women’s Civil Club of Birmingham, the Birmingham Festival of Arts and the Birmingham Art Association and established the Festival of Arts as a major cultural event and helped launch the Artist’s Guild, Birmingham Civic Opera and Women’s Committee of 100.

The Pink House has been a pillar of community, arts, and hope to the people of Homewood, to the Birmingham arts scene, and to the many refugees the Bridges welcomed into their home. It is well known that Eleanor and Georges were good friends with F. Scott Fitzgerald and Earnest Hemingway, and it is rumored that these two literary stars actually stayed at the Pink House on their many travels. Later, the home became a landmark in the progressive social and cultural scene. The Bridges hosted themed discussions each Sunday evening wherein The Little Theatre, now known as the Virginia Samford Theatre, had its very first performances. 

The Mobleys encourage supporters who want to save the Pink House to send an email or a letter to the Mayor and Council asking them to recognize the Pink House with a special designation or to introduce a change to the ordinances to help protect historical properties to allow this project to proceed.  

For more information about the Pink House plans, follow along on Facebook on the “Pink House Plans” group.