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Council rezones property on Green Valley Road for townhomes

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Neal Embry Starnes Media

Eleven new townhomes will be built on 2961 Green Valley Road after the Vestavia Hills City Council voted to rezone the property from Vestavia Hills R-5 multifamily housing to VH R-9, a planned residential district.

The property currently contains apartment units, which will be razed to make room for the townhomes. The property is owned by Tower Homes, which will build homes that are between 1,133 square feet and 1,180 square feet, though they can be expanded to 1,800 feet. While the homes are usually two bed and two baths, they can be expanded to three beds, said Price Hightower, president of Tower Homes.

A drainage plan to deal with issues noted by both the city and the developer was previously approved by the city, and while the number of residential units will increase from four to 11, the maximum residential density allowed under the zoning is 15, so the density of homes will be less than it could be with another development.

Council member Kimberly Cook said she would like to see some form of “cottage community zoning,” which might help create more of a buffer between the planned community and Green Valley Road, as well as mandating more green space, which is not as prevalent in the plans as she said she would like.

Sidewalks, required by the R-9 zoning, will be built within the community.

The council also approved a bid from Dunn Construction in the amount of $3.74 million to repave an estimated 21 miles of city streets in three years.

In other business, the council:

In his report to the council, Downes said city employees have donated $18,000 to United Way, a 6% increase from last year.

Council member Paul Head and Mayor Ashley Curry also reminded the public of vacancies on both the parks and recreation board and the library board, with applications due by Nov. 4.

On first read, meaning the issues will be discussed at a future council meeting, the council introduced a resolution reinstating incentives for Serra Automotive Group in exchange for Serra, which is reopening their automotive business, granting right-of-way to the city that is needed to improve and construct sidewalks on Massey Road.

Another first-read ordinance would change the name of the Cahaba Heights Athletic Complex to Cahaba Heights Park, as it will, once the work associated with the Community Spaces Plan is finished, include a dog park and the New Merkel House.

Work Session

At a work session prior to the council meeting, the council discussed ensuring that all city parks have consistent branding, though the Sicard Hollow Athletic Complex would keep its name.

The council also discussed the Serra Automotive incentives at the work session. In 2012, the council agreed to an incentive agreement with Serra due to the car dealership building in the floodplain, with the maximum payout set at $250,000, said the city’s communications director, Cinnamon McCulley.

The business closed in 2014 due to flooding but is now rebuilding and has raised their business out of the floodplain. McCulley said the city is now considering reinstating the incentive agreement, which still has about $232,000 left to pay out, not because of the business reopening, but because property needed for the city to complete its Massey Road project, which includes improving and adding sidewalks to the road, is owned by Serra. The agreement would be reinstated in exchange for the group granting the city right-of-way to the land needed for the road project.

The potential revision of the city’s food truck ordinance was also discussed, after the issue of several food trucks in the city not moving was raised. Instead of moving to a new location every three days, some food trucks are simply closing on the fourth day and then reopening, Downes said.

Downes said the trucks on the south end of U.S. 31 are not moving and have become “quasi-permanent.” However, because of the way the ordinance is written, enforcing compliance that meets the city's intentions is hard for the police department.

“If we want to be the best city that we can, we want to encourage the brick and mortar investment in our community,” Downes said.

Cook raised the possibility of creating a “hub” for food trucks, which would have to be made legal by a revised or new ordinance.

The council also discussed the possibility of making an exception for new signage at the Vestavia Hills City Center. The property owner has inquired about adding a sign to the roof of the old Calypso Joe’s restaurant, which is currently not allowed under the city’s ordinance. The signage would attach to an existing rooftop structure.

Council member Paul Head said he usually doesn’t like exceptions to the rule but said the city should be more relaxed when it comes to entertainment districts, including the City Center.

One option raised by Downes was having new signage go to the design review board before being approved, so it is examined by “design-minded people,” Downes said.

Curry said the city is currently trying to be designated a “Human-Trafficking Free Zone,” which applies to cities which meet certain criteria, including the training of first responders to spot potential human-trafficking incidents.

Downes also told the council they would have to, at some point, decide whether to authorize the conversion of Tier II city employees into Tier I, which provides greater retirement benefits. The council passed a resolution in support of state legislation allowing cities to do so, with the legislation passing during the most recent legislative session. However, Downes said doing so does come with a cost. The city would be responsible for about a 2% increase in unfunded liability costs, as well as an increased cost in retirement benefits, though an exact figure is not yet available and would be determined at a later date by the Retirement System of Alabama, Downes said.

The city has maintained the position that converting Tier II employees, which include all city employees hired on or after Jan. 1, 2013, back into Tier I helps attract more employees. The neighboring city of Mountain Brook on Oct. 28 voted not to convert their Tier II employees into Tier I.

The council also voiced their approval of moving the second council meeting in December from December 23 to December 16, though the move must be approved at a future council meeting.

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