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By ANDREW SIMONSON | Sports Editor

Some of my most memorable nights in my five years as a Birmingham resident can be traced to Oak Mountain Amphitheatre. It was my one of my first chances to visit the great community of Pelham.

Seeing Jason Isbell and the 400 Unit at Oak Mountain in fall 2021 was just my second trip down I-65 to Pelham, and between Birmingham Bulls games and memorable concerts like Willie Nelson, Zac Brown Band and NeedToBreathe, it gave me more time to experience the people and places that make Pelham special while I attended Samford.

Alas, with the last note of Post Malone’s “Sunflower” in October, those music-filled nights ended. The loss of Oak Mountain Amphitheatre at the hands of a legalized monopoly in Live Nation cannot be overstated for Pelham.

However, rather than mourning a bygone era, Pelham chose to forge ahead with a new centerpiece to its great city by buying the property for future development. For that, I applaud the city officials for making the most of a bad situation.

It’s still early in the process, and everyone has thoughts on what it should be. There are only three things we know it won’t be: a housing development (since that was Live Nation’s original plan before Pelham smartly nullified it by buying the lot), a new amphitheater (because it’s impossible to compete with Live Nation to attract top acts) or a nuclear waste dump (thanks, Mayor Gary Waters).

I’d like to throw another idea into the ring: a soccer-specific stadium for Birmingham Legion FC.

Since I can already hear the sneers and laughter, let me explain why this is the perfect strategy to bring memorable nights back to Pelham.

The top request from Pelham residents for the lot’s future center around a place where big events can take place that attract visitors from Birmingham and the surrounding area.

It’s a smart idea. The biggest reason that businesses came to the U.S. 119 corridor was because Oak Mountain Amphitheatre regularly brought thousands of money-flush visitors to the area. Adding another event venue that can do just that alongside the Pelham Civic Complex and Ice Arena is as close to a like-for-like replacement that residents can hope for.

However, the tricky part is creating something novel enough to fill a need in the Birmingham area. Again, think to the Pelham Civic Complex and Ice Arena. It’s one of the only ice rinks in central Alabama, which is why Pelham gets events like University of Alabama club hockey games.

The easiest answer is a midsize sports stadium that can host events that places like Protective Stadium are too big to properly host. A stadium with around 8,000 seats with amenities like shade to protect from the heat and rain, proper chairbacks and ample parking and restaurants within reach.

For all its shininess, Protective offers none of these things. Attending a game in the heat with metal bleachers or rain with no awning are non-starters, and the expensive concessions, parking and Ticketmaster fees only worsen the fan experience.

Of the three teams who play in Protective Stadium, no one feels this pain more than the Legion. Their games were already the least attended when they moved from UAB’s PNC Field in 2022, and since then, the cavernous environment has caused attendance to plummet year-after-year.

Those declines aren’t as much a mark on the team’s quality but rather one on the environment they play in. Legion fans have cried out for a new stadium for years to the point where the team knows it but can’t do much about it. Pelham can provide exactly what they want.

Not only can the stadium regularly attract thousands of fans to attend its 17 soccer games a year, it can also attract other events that are too small for Protective but would be great experiences in a smaller stadium.

Think rodeos, festivals and even AHSAA championships. It could lead to a setup with the state soccer semifinals at Dunnavant Valley Fields and the finals at the stadium in Pelham. Down the road, it could help Pelham bid for the Super 7 since its smaller capacity and noise-accenting features would create the electric atmosphere that football fans have craved for decades.

These events would easily outpace Oak Mountain’s previous concert output, which was 19 shows in 2023 and 2024 combined. While I’d be naïve to say soccer games will get the same crowds that Post Malone and Creed drew last year, the stadium would get more frequent crowds of thousands that could still pour money into surrounding businesses like Creekside BBQ, Margarita Grill and The Beer Hog.

That said, both the club and city would have some mental roadblocks to get past.

For the Legion, they would have to move away from downtown Birmingham, which may be a scary and risky decision on the surface. However, another team made a similar decision not too long ago when downtown Birmingham couldn’t serve it well.

Pelham’s beloved Birmingham Bulls played in the cavernous BJCC Arena for their previous iterations and saw new life when they came to Pelham for their revival. Now, the Pelham Civic Complex and Ice Arena draws crowds of thousands 28 nights a year thanks to the Bulls’ consistent and loyal fanbase of people who crave entertainment right in their backyard.

The Legion can draw a similar audience, with one big difference: hockey didn’t have a big base in the Pelham area. Soccer does. The Cahaba Valley region is not only home to thriving soccer clubs like BUSA/Alabama FC and HVS but some of the best high school teams in the state like Oak Mountain, Spain Park, Briarwood, Indian Springs, Westminster OM and Pelham High itself.

Putting a soccer stadium in the middle of the biggest soccer hotbed of the state is a no-brainer that, when paired with a better fan experience than Protective, would immediately boost attendance through the roof and make the stadium an instant win for the club and city.

As for the city, it wouldn’t be the first time a soccer club wanted to lay down roots in Pelham. However, comparing the short-lived professional indoor soccer club Magic City SC to the Legion is like comparing the Hindenburg to the Goodyear blimp.

Magic City SC was doomed from the start due to a lack of advertising and poor management. With the Legion going into their seventh season, they have proven they can not only survive but thrive in the Birmingham sports landscape. They have stable financial backing with local owners and already have built a brand in the state of Alabama. The two couldn’t be more polar opposites.

I know as well as anyone Pelham will probably build more restaurants and businesses to expand its entertainment district. I can respect that. It’s the safe choice.

However, Pelham has a chance to take a big swing and do something different that could transform the city the same way that Oak Mountain Amphitheatre did by building a major event venue.

Doing so would not only boost the economy for years to come by helping one of the region’s longest-lasting professional teams, but it would give people from outside Pelham a chance to create more memorable nights while taking in all the great people and places the city has to offer.

And that’s something worth fighting for.