City officials preview some city projects for 2021

It’s safe to say that few of us are sad to leave 2020 behind and move into 2021.

As we do so, the COVID-19 pandemic continues with no clear end in sight.

But the people of Mountain Brook can at least hope that 2021 will be a better year than 2020.

In this article, we offer a preview of the new year through the perspective of the leaders of Mountain Brook’s city government.

We asked Mayor Stewart Welch III and several of the city’s department heads to share with us some of their key goals or initiatives for 2021.

Included are updates from Welch, as well as Parks and Recreation, Public Works, the fire and police departments and Mountain Brook Schools, which is on the verge of a major capital improvements project.

MOVING ‘BACK TOWARD NORMAL’

If there’s any bright side to the pandemic in Mountain Brook, it’s the way city government adapted, Welch said.

“We have amazing employees,” he said. “When COVID-19 hit, we went remote from home for all employees where that was feasible and observed strict protocols for all others. All of our folks embraced the challenge and adapted remarkably well. The result was we continued to serve our citizens with the excellence they deserve and expect.”

Given recent medical developments, Welch is also optimistic that we can begin to move past the pandemic in 2021.

“Now that a vaccine is on the horizon, I expect to see life move back towards normal, especially for our retailers and restaurants,” Welch said.

Welch said his “number one goal” in his new term, which began in November, was supporting local businesses.

In other priorities for 2021, Welch said he’s looking forward to “significant progress” on Phase 2 of the Lane Parke retail center in Mountain Brook Village.

Developer John Evans has made “a lot of progress” on planning the construction of Phase 2, Welch said last fall.

Phase 1 of the center is now fully leased, according to the developers.

The mayor said the city is also working with the Alabama Legislature to make Lane Parke an official entertainment district.

Other Mountain Brook city officials have expressed a strong desire to move forward with Lane Parke.

“I really do look forward to seeing Lane Parke become an integral part of Mountain Brook Village and a terrific appendage to our entire city,” City Council President Virginia Smith said in 2020.

1ST-CLASS ATHLETIC FACILITIES

In ranking the city’s major projects for 2021, Welch said he’s “most excited about the progress we are making and will continue to make” at the Mountain Brook Athletic Complex.

He said improvements underway at the Athletic Complex and other facilities are part of a nearly $6 million capital improvement project.

The city and Mountain Brook Schools worked with stakeholders, including organizations that run youth sports leagues, to develop a master plan, the mayor said.

The plan “focuses on the assets we have, because we really don’t have an easy way to go out and get new land that is contiguous to Mountain Brook for more fields,” he said this fall.

City Parks and Recreation Superintendent Shanda Williams is excited about the upgrades.

“We’re making much-needed improvements in several fields that will benefit everyone,” she said.

For example, lighting at the facilities will see major improvements.

“It not only benefits the players that get to play on new fields, but the new LED lights will cost less to operate and maintain, benefiting the city and taxpayers, and also reduce surrounding light pollution for the neighbors of the fields,” Williams said.

Major improvements at the Athletic Complex are being made in phases.

“We’ve recently finished turfing a number of fields which has allowed practices and games to continue after bad weather moves through,” Welch said.

The installation of artificial turf on five fields at the complex was completed in October, Williams said. There were also improvements made to the dugouts and scoreboards.

Still to come at the Athletic Complex are new lighting, new batting cages behind Field No. 3, a playground, new concession facilities and restrooms and some paving between thefields.

Field No. 1 will also be rebuilt, including an artificial surface, new lighting, new bleachers and a new restroom.

The city hopes to complete most of the work by the summer in time for fall ball, Williams said.

The city will have invested about $3 million in the complex by the time it’s complete, she said.

There will also be major improvements at Cherokee Bend Elementary Field, such as all-new lighting, new paving and new backstops and restrooms, she said. It will be bid out this spring and work will be done next summer.

The field at Mountain Brook Elementary will get LED lights, Williams said.

KEEPING THE PUBLIC SAFE

The Mountain Brook Fire Department is looking forward to 2021 when it will have its own live fire training facility for the first time.

The two-level facility will be built using six steel shipping containers, said Fire Chief Chris Mullins. The MBFD plans to have the first level completed in the first quarter of 2021 and the second level by the fall.

“We currently do not have a live fire training facility and therefore must rely on outside sources to obtain this training, which is required by the Insurance Services Office and the National Fire Protection Association,” Mullins said. “With our own facility, we will be able to train on-duty and not have to send our personnel out of the city.”

Mullins said he’s excited about some other capital projects in 2021, including new firefighter turn-out gear, thermal imaging cameras and battery-powered extrication tools. The MBFD has also begun developing specifications for a new ladder truck.

Police Chief Ted Cook said the Mountain Brook Police Department is researching the feasibility of take-home cars for officers. This would most likely be for the 2021-22 budget year consideration, Cook said.

Currently the officers share the same cars from shift to shift, meaning that some of the vehicles are in use almost 24 hours a day.

If the new plan is adopted, there will actually be one car per officer, said Welch.

“They would take that car home,” Welch said. “There would be a lot more police cars, but they would be driven a third less and would last that much longer.”

The MBFD and the MBPD also partnered recently to complete some honor guard training.

“We’re excited to have personnel trained to work with the Fire Department when the need arises for us to have an honor guard, Cook said.

“This will give us the opportunity to showcase the professionalism and pride of our departments — and our city — in formal events,” Mullins said.

MAJOR PUBLIC WORKS

There are also some major infrastructure projects planned in the city, including bridge renovation and replacement projects and a continuing effort to expand sidewalks, Welch said.

Public Works Director Ronnie Vaughan supplied some of the details on these projects with help from consulting engineers Nathan Currie of Sain Associates and Blair Perry of Gresham Smith.

The city of Mountain Brook has teamed with the city of Birmingham to build a sidewalk along Hagood Street from Euclid Avenue to Montclair Road. Construction is expected tobegin this spring, Currie said.

The city plans to design and construct a sidewalk along Pine Ridge Road from Overbrook Road to Old Leeds Road, and hopes to begin acquiring rights of way and easements by mid- to late 2021 and begin construction in 2022, Currie said.

Design work is nearly complete for the new bridge planned for Caldwell Mill Road, Perry said. However, at press time, the city was working with the Birmingham Water Works Board (BWWB) to relocate a water main to allow for construction.

If the BWWB is able to shut off the watermain while it proceeds with the relocation, Perry said the city would be able to advertise, bid and begin construction on the bridge. If construction begins in March, the bridge could be complete by September, Perry said.

Design is about 80% complete for a bridge at Old Brook Trail and Canterbury Road, and right of way acquisition should begin in early 2021, Perry said. However, engineers are coordinating with all of the utility companies to determine which utilities conflict with the proposed bridge construction, and this could be a lengthy process, he said. The goal currently is to open bids on the project with ALDOT in the fall and begin construction in late 2021 or early 2022.

Another project that has been discussed for several years is the installation of two traffic roundabouts in Mountain Brook Village by the cities of Mountain Brook and Birmingham.

A large roundabout will be installed at the Cahaba Road/Highway 280 ramps/Lane Park Road intersection and a mini roundabout at the intersection of Cahaba Road and Culver Road.

The design plans are approximately 85% complete, and the cities will soon begin acquiring the needed rights of way and easements, Perry said.

However, Jefferson County must replace the sewer at this intersection before construction begins on the roundabouts.

The sewer project is currently scheduled for 2022, meaning that the roundabouts are estimated to start construction in mid-2022.

MOUNTAIN BROOK SCHOOLS IMPROVEMENTS

Mountain Brook Schools faced a turbulent 2020 because of the COVID-19 pandemic, but the district has “a bright future,” Board of Education President Nicky Barnes said in a statement in October.

This is due in part due to a major new series of improvements to aging MBS facilities that gets underway in 2021. The improvements will take 15 to 20 years and cost about $75 million, said MBS officials.

There will be three new construction projects — one at Mountain Brook High School, one at Mountain Brook Junior High, and another at Brookwood Forest Elementary — along with extensive renovations at Cherokee Bend Elementary, Crestline Elementary, and Mountain Brook Elementary.

The money for the upgrades will come from a recent property tax increase.

In 2019, city voters approved a 10-milltax increase that was projected to generate an additional $6 million in annual revenue for the school system.

In December 2019, the Mountain Brook Board of Education hired Brasfield & Gorrie General Contractors as its construction manager.

In October, the school board voted to approve the designs presented by the architects and directed underwriters to move forward in securing $74 million in bond issues to fund the projects.

“The Board recognizes that now is the time to take advantage of historic low interest rates as we enter into the bond market,” said MBS Superintendent Dicky Barlow in the board newsletter.

A timeline for projects will be released at a later date. Some, however, will begin as early as May 2021.

Here are the construction highlights:

• MBHS will see a new two-story academic wing with 42 classrooms, a new counseling suite, a new band room and renovated dance studio, as well as renovated restrooms in the Fine Arts Center.
• MBJH will get a new three-story main entrance building with 18 classrooms, a renovated and expanded cafeteria and auditorium, renovated locker rooms and a new pitched roof and turret over the media center.
• Brookwood Forest Elementary will have a new addition with a main entrance, administrative suite and lunchroom. Classrooms and restrooms will be renovated. There will alsobe a new gym roof, HVAC improvements and new paint and flooring as needed.
• At Cherokee Bend Elementary, there will be renovations of the lunchroom, kitchen, administrative suite and restrooms, as well as HVAC improvements and new paint and flooring as needed.
• Crestline Elementary will receive a new gymnasium. There will also be renovations to the auditorium, main entry, administrative offices and restrooms. There will also be HVAC improvements and new paint and flooring as needed.
• Mountain Brook Elementary will see renovations of the lunchroom, administrative offices and restrooms, as well as new windows and waterproofing. There will be HVAC improvements and new paint and flooring as needed.

For updates regarding the construction timeline, read our Schoolhouse coverage in Village Living or go to the MBS website at mtnbrook.k12.al.us.