Hoover to pay $3 million for road accessing new sports complex, schools, homes
The Hoover City Council on Thursday night agreed to pay a little more than $3 million to build a new road between Hoover High School and Flemming Parkway, near Bumpus Middle School.
About half of that money is coming out of the $80 million the city borrowed to pay for the new sports complex next to Hoover Metropolitan Stadium (the road will give access to the sports complex), Chief Financial Officer Melinda Lopez said.
The other half will come out of gasoline tax money the city receives, Lopez said, and was approved by the council tonight as part of a budget amendment.
C.S. Beatty Construction was the low bidder to win the project and build the road, with a bid of $3,050,435. Other bidders were Saia Construction at $3,461,744 and T.E. Stevens Co. at $4,550,000, city records show.
Hoover Council President Gene Smith asked during a council work session last week if the city had a history with C.S. Beatty Construction. Chief Operations Officer Tim Westhoven said C.S. Beatty was the company that handled expansion of the Hoover RV Park last year.
Construction of the access road will be on a fast track, with a goal of completing it by mid-September, Westhoven said.
This road will serve as a second way to get to and from the new five-field baseball/softball complex being built just west of the Hoover Met stadium and Finley Center, which is scheduled to be finished in August.
The road also will provide access to the five soccer/lacrosse/football fields, tennis complex, splash pad and playground being built south of the RV Park, which is scheduled to be completed by Jan. 4, 2019.
Hoover school officials say they are eager to see the road built because it will give them a third way out of Hoover High and give more direct access between Hoover High and Bumpus Middle School. The road will tie into an existing road on school system property that runs by the Hoover High baseball field, Hoover Hall building and school bus maintenance facility.
Flemming Farms, a new subdivision being built by Signature Homes, also will tie into this access road.
Councilman Curt Posey inquired as to whether anything would be done to ensure that the city doesn’t suffer loss due to construction equipment for Flemming Farms traveling on the road after it is built.. He would not want the city to invest $3 million in a road, only to have it almost immediately torn up by construction equipment, he said.
City Planner Mac Martin said the city engineer could choose to require the developer to put up a bond to cover any damage, but that would be up to the city engineer.
The council also on Thursday night agreed to pay Brasfield & Gorrie $195,000 to serve as a construction manager for the road project and Goodwyn, Mills & Cawood $36,000 to monitor the site preparation work and test the materials being used.
In other business, the council:
- Postponed consideration of a three-year contract extension with Santek Waste Services of Alabama for solid waste disposal due to an uptick in complaints the city has received in recent months.
- Amended the city’s 2018 budget to, among other things, provide $73,000 for new software for the Building Inspection Department, $50,000 for an investment advisor and $18,000 to help replace a wrecked Chevrolet Tahoe.
- Deleted a revenue auditor position and used that money to add a public safety communications manager.
- Moved a position from the Parks and Recreation Department to the mayor’s office to create a community services officer job that will seek out grant money for the city.
- Approved a liquor license for a new owner of the Courtyard by Marriott Hoover at 1824 Montgomery Highway.
- Gave approval for Blackridge Partners to build a clubhouse, swimming pool and other amenities on Blackridge Cove in the new Blackridge residential development under construction south of the Lake Wilborn community in Trace Crossings.
- Set a public hearing for Feb. 5 to consider approval for a new 200-person senior living community along Parkway Lake Drive between U.S. 31 and Parkway River Drive in the Riverchase office park.
- Set a public hearing for Feb. 5 to consider a request from the Hampton Inn & Suites at 4520 Galleria Boulevard to sell beer and wine at a convenience store inside the hotel.