Emily Featherston
Both the Vestavia Hills City Council and the Vestavia Hills Board of Education will meet Monday evening to discuss items of business. The City Council meeting is the first regular meeting of June, while the BOE meeting is a specially-called session.
The council will discuss multiple agenda items, including appointing a program manager for the Community Spaces Plan.
According to the agenda for Monday's meeting, the council will vote on whether or not to award the contract to TCU Consulting services.
On April 17, the council interviewed five firms interested in leading the city through the executing of the plan. After hours of interviews and discussion, the council asked City Manager Jeff Downes to further investigate what a contract would look like with Robins & Morton and TCU.
At that meeting, TCU representative Ken Upchurch said the team that would be working on the Community Spaces Plan has a track record of finishing projects on time, and on or under budget, including a recent major project with Huntsville City Schools.
Upchurch also has history working with Downes, from when Downes was still in his position in Montgomery.
The resolution up for consideration states that the contract payment would be split into three phases: Phase One - $120,000, Phase Two - $373,650 and Phase Three - $1,002,000. Additional funding would be allowed for architectural work, civil engineering and operational planning up to $8,500, $4,500 and $26,000, respectively.
Photo courtesy of Vestavia Hills.
The Community Spaces Plan includes improvements to multiple city parks, with significant changes to Wald Park planned.
The city's request for proposal outlined what each phase would consist of, and an estimated timeline, with phases two and three being contingent on the scope and outcome of Phase One.
Phase One, three months, would be the program budget validation and execution strategy phase, where the firm would work with the city to determine how to go about the project as a whole, including phasing needs, a funding structure and other mechanisms needed to bring about the most ideal timeline and grouping of projects. Phase Two, three to six months, would be the "pre-construction" phase, where the designing of the projects would take place, and the bidding process for each. Phase Three, 24 months, would be the construction phase, where the firm would work to manage the projects and report progress and problems to Downes and the council.
[Check out an overview of the Community Spaces Plan]
Downes said that Phase One is arguably the most important, as it would further establish the specific goals for the Community Spaces Plan and determine if the budget proposed by the committee was accurate and still feasible.
The ambiguity of the current plan became an issue at the April 10 council meeting when the city voted 3-1 to purchase the Gold's Gym property. Place 2 Councilor Kimberly Cook and resident Robert DeBuys both expressed concern that the council was purchasing property and investing in the Community Spaces Plan before the plan was actually finalized.
At the meeting, the council will also discuss:
- An easement for Alabama Power at the property adjacent to Vestavia Hills Elementary Cahaba Heights.
- An agreement with the Birmingham Swim League.
- The vacation and sick leave usage policy for full time city employees.
- Jefferson and Shelby County tax levies.
- A budget adjustment to cover landfill and hauling fees.
- A measure to replace the HVAC system at the Library in the Forest.
Board of Education
The BOE is meeting for a specially called meeting Monday to discuss several items of business pertaining to work going on in schools over the summer.
The board will vote on two contracts: one with Johnny Hamilton Painting for $46,585 for interior painting at seven schools, and one with Brian's Carpet & Tile for $32,450 for flooring work in five schools.
The board will also vote on an access agreement with the city for parking and property access at Vestavia Hills Elementary Cahaba Heights. The city approved a transfer of property to the BOE on May 22, with a parking and access agreement as a stipulation on the conveyance.
The BOE agenda also lists personnel as an item of discussion, as well as an easement for Bellsouth.
The City Council meeting will take place at City Hall, 1032 Montgomery Highway, and the BOE meeting will take place at the board's offices at 1204 Montgomery Highway.
