Birmingham Housing Unveils Rebrand After 90-Year-Old Name Change

The Housing Authority of the Birmingham District, an agency serving Birmingham residents since 1935, has rebranded itself as Birmingham Housing — and the new name comes with a new mission that goes well beyond affordable housing.

The organization says the rebrand signals a holistic approach: supporting a pathway to economic freedom, providing educational opportunities, promoting health and wellness, and connecting residents to resources that help them achieve greater independence.

Leadership initiated the effort, but the agency says it sought feedback from people who work for the organization and those it serves.

Who ran the process?

Denita Clara Bearden, chief administrative officer, coordinated the process and worked directly with the branding consultant after the vendor was selected. Her role involved arranging meetings, collecting research, coordinating briefings and reviewing recommendations.

The agency began by examining its internal identity and the type of organization it wanted to become. It then expanded those conversations to include employees, resident representatives, commissioners and external stakeholders.

According to a timeline provided by Antwan Harris, Director of Strategic Communications, discussions and the scope of the project developed in June 2025. The milestones that followed:

• Preliminary discovery and planning: September 2025
• Leadership and board engagement: October and November 2025
• External stakeholder engagement: December 2025 through January 2026
• Brand presentations: March 31, 2026
• Logo design and visual identity development: May and June 2026
• First draft of the rebrand: July 2026, followed by several revisions
• Final draft and board approval, including a resolution to initiate the rebrand: August 2026

What did residents and employees say?

Dontrelle Young Foster, president and CEO, said the organization surveyed employees and met with its Council President Advisory Board, whose members represent the agency's communities. The board of commissioners and external stakeholders were included in discussions about the organization's direction and how the new identity would be received.

"We looked internally to our leadership team to start the process," Foster said. "We also received employee feedback through surveys."

She said the organization wanted residents and other stakeholders to share their perspectives before the final materials were approved.

Bearden said the hardest part of the job was stripping personal taste out of the decision. "One of the biggest challenges was setting aside personal preferences around name, colors and such to select what was most widely acceptable and appropriate for the agency," she said.

The process also taught the team a lesson in restraint: the new identity did not need to be overly complicated or abstract.

For Bearden, seeing the project move from an idea to an approved brand ranked as a significant accomplishment. "It is always rewarding to see a vision come to life," she said. "It would have been easy to remain the same with all the other priorities we have in front of us, but I am so proud of our leadership team for sticking to the process and seeing it through."

Why the rebrand matters now

Bearden hopes the rebrand encourages employees and residents to recognize that change is possible and that building on the agency's mission remains essential work.

"I hope that the rebrand reminds our staff and residents that it is never too late to reimagine something new," Bearden said.

The leadership team behind the effort includes Foster as president and CEO, Seth Embry as chief operating officer, Melanie Baker as chief financial officer, Dr. Josephine Banks as chief performance and accountability officer, Harris as director of strategic communications, and Kangi Drake as director of program compliance, alongside Board of Commissioners member Alyshia Cook.

For an agency that has provided affordable housing since the middle of the Great Depression, the bet now is that a simpler name and a broader mission can carry its work into its tenth decade.