Council to vote on tax increase, phases 2-3 of Community Spaces Plan

At its first regular meeting of April, the Vestavia Hills City Council will take up multiple matters that will have a decades-long effect on the city.

The first will be an increase to the city's sales and lodging taxes, raising the sales tax by 1 cent and the lodging tax by 3 percent.

At a public forum on Tuesday, April 3, the council and City Manager Jeff Downes presented the capital needs and financing plan for accomplishing the bulk of the Community Spaces Plan, multiple stormwater and other infrastructure projects, sidewalk construction and road paving.

The capital needs, plus the refinancing of the Gold's Gym property, total at around $58 million. In order to service a bond for that amount, the city would need an additional $3 million a year.

That revenue, Downes and Mayor Ashley Curry explained to a sizable audience, could most easily come from an increase to the sales and lodging taxes.

If approved, the increase would go into effect on June 1.

Also on the April 9 agenda is the next step in the Community Spaces Plan, with a resolution extending the city's contract with TCU Consulting Services.

Having completed Phase 1, the amended ordinance would move the contract into the execution of Phase 2 and Phase 3.

Phase 2, valued at around $373,650, would be the pre-construction phase, where TCU would guide projects through the design and bidding processes. The phase could last anywhere from six to 12 months.

Phase 3, valued at $1,002,000, would be the construction phase, where TCU would execute the designs and make sure projects are completed in a timely and budget-appropriate manner. The phase could last upwards of 24 months.

Other Agenda Items Include:

• Assessing the amount of a tax lien on 2535 Ivy Glenn Drive.
• Considering a conditional-use approval for 220 Erwin Circle to allow five unrelated individuals to live in the same home.

The meeting will take place at 6 p.m. in the council chambers at City Hall.