Neal Embry
Vestavia Hills Mayor Ashley Curry, along with council members Rusty Weaver and George Pierce, prepare for the Aug. 12 council meeting.
Next year’s budget priorities for the City of Vestavia Hills include pay increases for city employees, road paving and improvement, and several new parks and recreation employees.
City Manager Jeff Downes introduced the fiscal year 2020 budget at the Aug. 12 Vestavia Hills City Council meeting, though it will not be voted on for another two meetings, Downes said. The budget will also be discussed at a work session on Aug. 19.
The proposed budget includes a 5% merit increase for qualified employees, as well as longevity pay, and adds two new parks and recreation superintendent positions, as well as a new program leader in the parks and recreation department. The budget also includes a 1% cost-of-living increase for all employees to keep up with inflation rates.
The budget also includes the creation of a new special fund into which revenue from the new gas tax will be deposited. Those funds will be used to repave six miles of road and about $676,000 will be used to improve other roads in the city, Downes said.
The budget also includes funding for three school resource officer positions, with the Vestavia Hills Board of Education funding nine other SRO’s.
Because of a move to privatize fleet operations within the city for fiscal year 2019, Downes said the city saved about $219,000, and expects to save even more in the next fiscal year. A pilot program will allow the city to purchase new vehicles, a ladder truck for Station 4 and a heavy rescue unit, for the city’s first responders as well, Downes said.
In fiscal year 2020, Downes said the city anticipates about $46 million in revenue, though for several years, the city’s actual revenue was higher than what was budgeted. The general fund balance is expected to be about $14.3 million, Downes said.
Also in his report to the council, Downes said work to widen Liberty Parkway into a four-lane roadway should be finished in the next one to two weeks. Work to improve the connection to Overton Road near Interstate 459 should be finished in the next four to six weeks, he said.
The city has also received bids, which came in under original projection, for work to improve fields and other amenities at the Sicard Hollow Athletic Complex. The city plans to use the roughly $750,000 it received as part of a Mine Reclamation Grant to perform the work, Downes said.
In old business, the council approved a $32,560 increase to the Green Valley Road sidewalk project. City Engineer Christopher Brady said when work began on the project, workers discovered a drainage pipe they knew they’d have to improve was actually connected to another pipe that, because of the work, also had to be replaced, increasing the cost. The increase is also due to unexpected damage to a driveway that is part of the sidewalks. The damage, which had existed before the city began its work, will be fixed to avoid any danger to those using the sidewalks.
At the end of the meeting, the council went into executive session to discuss real estate issues. No action was taken after executive session.
In other business, the council:
- Approved the 2018 city audit, which was “clean,” according to an auditor who was in attendance. The audit also found the city was prepared to operate for 139 days with its current cash on hand.
- Approved the 90-day and overnight annexation of the following properties: 929 Mountain Branch Circle; 2645 Alta Glen Drive; 2606 Action Road; 2790 Action Place and 2429 Kenvil Circle.
- Moved the council meeting previously set for Nov. 11 to Nov. 13 in observance of Veterans Day.
An ordinance amending an ordinance establishing a fee structure for small-cell technology facilities in city limits was placed on first read, meaning it will come up at a future council meeting, along with other items.
