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Council hears proposed budget, approves rezoning for Baumhower's

by

Neal Embry

The City of Vestavia Hills is anticipating an additional $5.8 million in revenues next year, according to the fiscal year 2019 budget released at the Aug. 13 council meeting.

Each year since 2013, the city has brought in more revenue than was projected. City Manager Jeff Downes said next year’s anticipated revenues are more than $44 million, a roughly 15-percent increase from fiscal year 2018. A large portion of that increase comes from the newly-passed sales tax, instituted on June 1.

The proposed budget, which can be passed as early as Sept. 10, includes a 3-percent cost-of-living increase for all city employees, as well as a 5-percent merit increase for employees who have not reached the top of their salary schedule and longevity pay bonuses for employees who have worked for the city at least five years.

The council will have a work session on Aug. 20 to discuss the budget, Downes said.

Also at the meeting, the council took another step toward bringing Baumhower’s Victory Grille to Vestavia. While the purchase and sale agreement of the old public works building at 1280 Montgomery Highway has been approved, the project is still in the “due diligence” phase, Downes said. As part of the agreement, the city agreed to rezone any necessary land for the development.

At the council meeting, the council unanimously approved the rezoning of a portion of the land from unzoned to Vestavia Hills R-2, general business district. The majority of the land was rezoned to B-2 in the summer of 2016; however, additional land is needed for the development of the site. The site will also include a drive-thru restaurant. In addition to the rezoning, the council also approved vacating a right-of-way on a portion of Waldridge Road for the purpose of development. The value of that right-of-way was determined to be zero, since it was a swap for development purposes.

The council approved a pretrial diversion program for the municipal court. The program allows nonviolent, first-time offenders, with the victim’s consent, to avoid conviction and instead go through, and pay for, classes to help deal with the root cause of their crimes. The city’s municipal court director, Umang Patel, along with the city’s prosecutor, have discretion over who can enter the program, and applicants must fill out an application and pay all fees associated with the program. For those who are indigent, there is a statewide indigency fund to pay their costs, Patel told the council.

At the meeting, Mayor Ashley Curry read two proclamations. The first honored the city’s senior citizens in advance of National Senior Citizens Day on Aug. 21. The city will celebrate the event on Aug. 20, with Alabama sports broadcaster Eli Gold slated to be the key speaker. The event is at city hall from 4 to 6 p.m.

Curry also declared Aug. 13 as Coach Buddy Anderson Day, honoring the longtime Rebels football coach, who has won more games than anyone in the history of Alabama high school football.

The council also approved:

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