Council discusses stormwater ordinances, entertainment districts at work session

The Vestavia Hills City Council’s regular May work session included discussion about multiple long-term issues, including a handful of items that have been on the city’s radar for years.

Most urgent, due to an upcoming July 1 deadline, is the adoption of three new stormwater management ordinances.

The city has until July 1 to adopt ordinances that will bring the city’s stormwater management processes into compliance with the MS4 permit the city received from the Alabama Department of Environmental Management last year.

City Engineer Christopher Brady explained that the majority of the changes have to do with how the city monitors developments during and after construction, and the fees imposed on developers to cover the cost of those processes.

City Manager Jeff Downes also walked councilors back through the process the city went through with the Jefferson County Stormwater Management Authority (SWMA) over the last year.

SWMA, Downes and Brady explained, came up with draft ordinances the municipalities that participate in the group could use, but it is up to each individual city to pass the final version.

The new ordinances will create a requirement for developments over 1 acre to go through an annual inspection process to ensure that stormwater infrastructure is still compliant and functional, Brady explained, and imposes a $50 annual fee for those developments.

Additionally, the ordinance updates raise the cost of a earth-disturbance permit during construction from $100 to $400 for single-family residential developments, and from $400 to $1,000 for commercial developments. Additionally, sites larger than 1 acre will have to pay a one-time permit fee of $2,000.

The increases, Downes said, are primarily to cover the cost of having to hire a new engineer to inspect sites and investigate complaints, which the city did this last fiscal year.

The ordinances are expected to go before the council at an upcoming meeting, and must be passed before the July 1 deadline, or the city could face fines.

The council also discussed the city’s ability to add two more entertainment districts.

Currently, Downes explained, the Rocky Ridge Entertainment District is the only one in the city, but state law allows for up to two more.

After getting feedback from business owners, Downes said the city could potentially add two more districts: one in Cahaba Heights and one at the City Center.

Katherine McRee of the Cahaba Heights Merchants Association was at the meeting and spoke to the interest the restaurant owners in the heart of Cahaba Heights have in establishing such a district. Having the ability to allow open-carry of alcohol could create more of a community feel, she said, and would allow for more special events in the area.

Downes said that the proposed area would have the required four licensed alcohol purveyors, and is below the size limit imposed by the state.

Across town at the City Center, Downes said the new owners of the development have expressed interest in having an entertainment district to enhance the new direction they hope to take the area.

The council also discussed:

• The city’s flood mitigation plan. The plan and the research that went into it is available at vestavia.floodplainmanagementplan.com, and a survey will be available for public comment until June 5, unless the city elects to extend.
• A potential ordinance to allow for the sale of alcohol on Sundays beginning at 10 a.m. instead of noon. The change comes after the state’s allowance for individual municipalities to adopt “brunch bills” for earlier alcohol sales — named for the typical sale of mimosas and other popular beverages at brunch. Downes said he asked the Vestavia Hills Chamber of Commerce to get feedback from city restaurants, and while there aren’t many that currently serve a brunch, several noted that they would consider opening for brunch if such a measure were passed, and none expressed any negative thoughts about the issue. The issue would require a public forum, and Downes said the city welcomes public feedback.
• Hearing an update on the city’s upcoming bond issue to pay for the Community Spaces Plan and several infrastructure projects. A vote will be required, but Downes said it is the current recommendation after a Request for Proposals process to award the underwriting services to Citigroup Global Markets.
• Updating the software for the Vestavia Hills Police Department.