
Photo courtesy of Lawrence Elizabeth Knox.
A performance during The Exceptional Foundation’s Dinnertainment event.
Every year, the City of Vestavia Hills sets aside a small fraction of their budget to go toward area amenities. Some are recreational, like the Birmingham Zoo and the McWane Center, while others provide necessary services, including a regional mental health organization and the Exceptional Foundation, a school for special-needs adults and children located in Homewood.
Though several of these organizations are not located inside city limits, City Manager Jeff Downes said it helps sustain the community’s value and raises the quality of life for area residents.
“All of these groups have long-standing relationships with the city, either directly or indirectly, and provide some type of value to our city,” Downes said.
Meals on Wheels, for example, is slated to receive $4,500 in the 2019 budget and is an integral part of the city’s feeding of senior citizens at the New Merkel House, Downes said.
Other organizations, like the Alabama Symphony Orchestra, which was budgeted $7,500, provides school-based programming that benefits the city’s students. Similar organizations that benefit students include the zoo, the Botanical Gardens and Vulcan Park.
Overall, the city is set to give $152,178 to such programs. Roughly $90,000 of that is split between the MAX bus service and the Regional Planning Commission, with the latter helping bring in grants. With many of the programs, Downes said the cost is split between participating cities based on size or, in the case of the bus service, by miles serviced by the business.
The expenses represent a fraction of one percent of the budget.
“The statement could be made these groups do good work and dedicating a fraction of one percent [of the budget] is worthy,” Downes said. “... Overall, it’s a commitment by Vestavia Hills to the regional quality of life.”
It’s unclear when the city began giving money to the various organizations and programs, but Downes said it came about before he became city manager five years ago.
In the five years Downes has helped create the city’s budget, he said there’s not been much change in the amount given to the programs, though there is a $22,000 difference in the 2018 fiscal year budget compared to 2019. The difference was a drop in funding for the bus service from roughly $92,000 to about $70,000.
“We’ve been very blessed in Vestavia Hills to sustain funding,” Downes said.
The organizations are chosen because they provide value, either directly or indirectly, to the city, Downes said, and the city’s giving is intended as a goodwill gesture toward those organizations that help increase the quality of life for residents.
Other cities, including Homewood and Mountain Brook, also give money to similar programs. Steve Boone, finance director and city clerk for Mountain Brook, said the money represents a “service agreement” with the organizations. The zoo and gardens each receive $10,000, while the mental health organization receives $2,100, Boone said. Mountain Brook also gives $5,000 to the Prescott House, which helps abused children.
The city of Homewood, in its budget, allotted $25,000 for the Birmingham Zoo, $5,000 for the McWane Center and $2,500 for the Prescott House, among other organizations.