Birmingham native Eric Guster made a name for himself as an attorney in various courthouses in and around Jefferson County. Now he’s making a name for himself as a real estate developer throughout the same area.

Guster is bringing a roughly 6,000-square-foot retail center with four tenants, two of which will be health care facilities, to Birmingham’s Five Points West community.

His other real estate deals include the purchase of two downtown properties last year to create a mixed-use development named Third Avenue Food Court and the $4.25 million sale of the American Red Cross building in January 2020 (farther east down Third Avenue North).

Guster, a graduate of the former Ensley High School, said he wanted his first-ever development project, the recently announced $2 million retail center, to be in his neighborhood on the city’s west side.

To make that happen, Guster Law Firm acquired the former Regions Bank property at 2250 Bessemer Road for $100,000 from the city of Birmingham in September 2020.

Having two of the four tenants as health care facilities is by design, he said.

“So many African Americans don’t have access to health care just to have a checkup, just to see what that leg pain is and when you don’t have normal, accessible health care issues go unchecked, or medical appointments are missed, then longevity of a person’s life is greatly decreased,” he said.

A $2 million development in Birmingham’s Five Points West community will have four tenants, at least two of which will make health care more accessible to the community’s residents. (Guster Development / CCR Architecture & Interiors)

The new health care facilities in the retail center will be on the corner across from the Birmingham Crossplex, making it convenient for many older residents in the area “who deserve high-quality health care and don’t have to go all the way downtown. … They can go right down the street,” Guster said.

VIPcare, one of the medical tenants, focuses on medical care for patients ages 60 and older. The other medical tenant was not disclosed. Guster’s law office will occupy another one of the spaces.

There is about 1,500 square feet of space left for another tenant, ideally a professional office for a high-quality financial service provider or another medical provider, he said. Tenant spaces will begin buildouts in September.

While the retail center is already situated on a prominent corner, the cornerstone of the building displays two massive number fives that will be made out of glass and backlit upon completion, increasing the property’s visibility. Roman Gary of CCR Architecture & Interiors is the architect who came up with the idea.

“The building sits on one of the best and busiest corners in the city, and I wanted to build something there to pay homage to where I grew up,” Guster told the Birmingham Business Journal.

The city-owned property sat vacant for way too long, “but, fortunately, Mayor (Randall) Woodfin and his administration saw the vision and allowed me to buy it and to redevelop it,” Guster said.

The planned center is important because new, high-quality developments can “jumpstart” a neighborhood, he said.

“When businesses, for example, see that we’re building a $2 million building on this corner, and it’s successful, then others who can make those types of things happen” will see that such developments are viable. “That’s why it’s so necessary to build it … and make the development successful,” the developer said.

The timing of the investment, set to be complete in the first quarter of 2024, couldn’t be better with upcoming developments like the new Food Giant, also in Five Points West, and the planned family fun center for the Crossplex coming online.

“When you have those types of investments, then other people tend to come. Investors want to spend money where they are comfortable that they will be able to make a profit. That’s the whole purpose of an investment … and when others go somewhere to invest, and they make money, it creates a level of confidence for others who can do the same thing,” Guster said.

Birmingham attorney and real estate developer Eric Guster in front of ABC Select Spirits at 1116 Third Ave. North downtown. (Sam Jasper Photography)

Guster also has an eye on changing the look of property downtown.

His parcels there include two commercial buildings, one whose long-term tenant is ABC Select Spirits (commonly called the ABC store or state store) and another that housed Credit Finance Corp. ABC Select Spirits will remain as a tenant and is now officially part of Third Avenue Food Court, Guster said.

“Opportunities to acquire great buildings in a prime location, along with parking and strong tenants like ABC Select Spirits, rarely occur,” he said.

The purchase could allow Guster to change the face of a major Birmingham thoroughfare, he said. “We have two buildings on three parcels totaling over 1.3 acres in downtown Birmingham, with over 80 on-property parking spaces. When vehicles travel Third Avenue North from I-65 North heading downtown, everything on the immediate left between 11th Street and 12th Street is now owned by the Guster family.”

Guster Development is looking forward to making significant changes and upgrades at the location with plans to develop and build one or two drive-thru-only restaurants, including one that serves coffee and breakfast, for the estimated 19,000 commuters who pass the site daily and 10,000 vehicles per day that take the Third Avenue North exit, he said.

“It’s hard to fathom the densest commercial district in Jefferson County does not have decent food choices or a drive-thru coffee and/or doughnut shop. It’s time to change that,” he said.

This story originally was published by The Birmingham Times.