Photos by Sarah Finnegan.
The former Altadena Valley Country Club property is mostly untouched, aside from the occasional mowing.
The remaining land at the former Altadena Valley Golf Course and Country Club was donated to the city of Vestavia Hills at the Dec. 14 City Council meeting, with the possibility that the city will convey the property to Jefferson County in an effort to widen Acton Road.
The property includes the fairways along Acton Road, and was owned by the same property owners that owned the entire country club, which was previously donated to the city and is now a park.
City Manager Jeff Downes said the property owners had held on to the remaining 12 acres in hopes to develop it commercially but have now realized they cannot do so.
Downes said the property is valued at about $3.7 million, and Jefferson County has agreed to cut the grass as needed at the property. There will be no known operating expenses for the city, Downes said.
Ultimately, the city may convey the property to the county, as they are responsible for Acton Road, which is in desperate need of widening in the area near the golf course.
In other news, the Council approved a proposal for design services for improvements to the intersection of Columbiana Road and U.S. 31. The fee for design services, which will be done by Neel-Schaffer, is about $41,000, and the proposed changes include: restriping the dual-right turn lane from Columbiana Road onto the highway; performing access management at a gas station on the northern corner of the intersection; converting one access of Royal Automotive to right-in, right-out; and including signage to show who is able to turn right on red and limiting where right on red is allowed.
In his report to the Council, Downes discussed a couple of other intersections, saying that the county has agreed that improving the intersections of Blue Lake and Sicard Hollow Road, as well as the intersection of Rocky Ridge Road and Dolly Ridge Road, is a priority for them as well.
The Council also appointed Gregory Jones to the Vestavia Hills Library in the Forest Board and Shelley Gentle to the Vestavia Hills Parks and Recreation Board.
In other business, the Council:
- Approved a bid for replacing turf at the Sicard Hollow Athletic Complex, awarded to SprinTurf for about $700,000.
- Declared an old fire engine as surplus.
- Approved paying $6,000 to settle a lawsuit brought by a resident claiming damage to their property as a result of a flood event during construction of the Cahaba Heights Park project. Contractors will pay the remaining $19,000 of the $25,000 settlement.
Work Session
In a work session prior to the Council meeting, the Council debated whether to add a clubhouse to the plans for new tennis courts at Wald Park, in a possible public-private partnership. While a basic pavilion with bathrooms has been planned, opportunities may exist for more robust offerings, including a clubhouse and pro shop.
Ken Upchurch with TCU Consulting, which is overseeing the Community Spaces Plan, said the Council could wait six to eight weeks to get more information about what the project could look like with architecture work and design.
The Council decided to delay the bidding of the tennis court part of the Wald Park renovations by six to eight weeks in order to get more information about the possibility of the additions. There will also be a Vestavia Hills Listens topic created for the public to offer their feedback.
Upchurch also gave an update on other Community Spaces projects:
- The sanitary sewer portion of the Crosshaven Drive project was scheduled to be completed by the end of 2020, while the rest of the work will be done by mid- to late 2021.
- The new New Merkel House building should be complete no later than the first week of February.
- The community building had a slight delay due to some groundwater infiltrating the site, but it should be finished in mid-October 2021.
