Birmingham Mayor Randall Woodfin said Tuesday morning that the weekend shootout on Third Avenue West was “unacceptable,” but said the city’s hands are tied on controlling guns.

The shooting early Sunday morning in a gas station parking lot left one man dead and six others injured.

“The gun culture, as well as gun violence, in our community continues to rear its head in ways that are stupid, reckless,” Woodfin said.

“At a local level, our hands are tied as far as being able or legally allowed to regulate guns. The state of Alabama has chosen to go in the direction of no one even needs a permit. People can ride around with any type of guns.”

He also blamed Congress for allowing a ban on military style weapons to expire.

“You have inaction at the federal level, where the assault weapon ban expired and has not been renewed, and so it’s not just guns, but it’s the type of guns, military style guns that are on Birmingham’s streets,” Woodfin said.

“When you get no action or inaction at the federal level, when you get the state that says you don’t even need a permit, people still look to the 10 of us (mayor and city council), where we can’t even regulate guns.”

Woodfin said that the 2024 homicide rate is not worse.

“As this issue continues to be a problem in our city, I do want to publicly state that this is nothing to brag about, but on par, homicides year to date are pretty much where they were in 2023,” he said. “Then there are other forms of gun violence which I think it’s important to talk about – when people are shot and survived, which is actually down.”

Woodfin said he’s most concerned about shooting at homes that injures innocent children and elderly.

“The one that gives me most pain is actually shooting into occupied dwellings where people have guns in their vehicles, they would pull up, shoot and drive off,” he said.

“This is the one where it requires continued ideas and creativity around how do you keep neighborhoods safe. How do we keep homes safe for our seniors, elders who sit on porches, and children safe? We’ve seen the recklessness of behavior get innocent people shot and or killed.”

Woodfin, speaking in his report to the Birmingham City Council, said he would continue to work with the council on solutions.

“Because we’re not in a position to regulate guns, the conversation I’ve had with you all and the conversation I’ve been having with two of the 99 neighborhoods’ residents is, is there an opportunity for a pilot program to regulate spaces. What we found in our conversations going door to door with residents is that residents are open to that, that if we can’t regulate guns, is there a way to regulate space where people live.”

He did not have specifics on what that proposal would be.

“As we continue to gather information from residents, as we continue to get details of how this idea will look, we commit to coming back to the council, coming back to residents and coming back to the public to share how do we better regulate space if we can’t regulate guns to keep people safe, particularly where they live,” Woodfin said.

Businesses where shootings occur bear responsibility as well, he said.

The City of Birmingham is suing the owners and operators of the Shell station on Third Avenue West and an adjacent business after the weekend shooting.

More than 150 bullets were unleashed in the predawn incident on Sunday.

“Since the incident this weekend, the legal department has filed civil injunction against several of the establishments in the 800 block of Third Avenue West,” Woodfin said.

“I want to put all businesses on notice. We had this conversation publicly with you all two weeks ago. We believe in supporting our small businesses. Small businesses are the backbone of our community, as well as how we produce taxes in this community. At the same time, I think it’s worth noting publicly that there is an expectation that those who are small business owners, that they are responsible for the activities that happen on their private property, and or that spill out onto our public spaces that create or cause a public nuisance. Ultimately, you have to be held accountable.”