2026-10-26 - Transportation and Infrastructure Committee

00:01We'll call this meeting to order.

00:04First item of business is consideration

00:07of the minutes from the September 4th,

00:092026 meeting.

00:12>> I move that we approve the minutes from

00:14September 14th, 2026.

00:16>> All right. I'll second that. So, those

00:18meeting minutes are approved.

00:21Uh next up, we have

00:23Colin Alexander, who's going to present

00:26about the A trip two grant application

00:30for

00:313rd Avenue South.

00:35>> Good afternoon, committee members.

00:37Um last year, Bdot applied for an A trip

00:41two grant to make improvements along US

00:4378 there in front of Continental Gin

00:45between 7th or 3rd Avenue South and 46th

00:48Street South.

00:50We were not awarded that grant last

00:52round, but we feel strong enough about

00:54this application, we are resubmitting it

00:56again this year.

00:57Um as a refresher, the proposed scope

01:00would be to take those three

01:02intersections that are on a skew, 3rd

01:04Avenue, 4th Avenue, 5th Avenue, and T

01:06them in. We would redo the signal at 5th

01:09Avenue to provide a signalized entrance

01:13and exit um out of Cahaba Brewery.

01:17We would also add a left turn phase at

01:1946th Street to get into to Continental

01:21Gin and then do some sidewalk repair

01:24work and and add some on-street parking

01:26spaces. Um so, it's not only will it

01:29help in terms of the economic

01:31redevelopment of Continental Gin, but

01:32it's a huge safety

01:34um issue, too.

01:36Um there's a significant amount of

01:38traffic calming requests, especially

01:39along 5th Avenue and and someone 4th.

01:42We, over the last four or five years,

01:44have done road diet work. We've done

01:46speed cushions on 4th. We've done stop

01:48signs. Really, the only way to really

01:52solve the problem is to change how that

01:54road functions and how it intersects

01:56with um Crestwood Boulevard because

01:58currently, if you're headed east on 5th

02:01Avenue, there is no stop. You just kind

02:03of slingshot into

02:05into US 78. The other benefit is for the

02:09fire [snorts] station response at 10:22.

02:12Currently, you If you're coming out of

02:14that station, you cannot go and then

02:16turn left onto US 78 to get back into

02:19Avondale. So, if you have an an event in

02:23the business district of Avondale, the

02:24fire trucks have to go back along 5th

02:27Avenue and back through the neighborhood

02:28streets in order to get to that fire.

02:30Whereas here, they would have a left

02:32turn access that currently does not

02:33exist.

02:35>> Okay.

02:36>> So, altogether, it's a $2 million grant

02:38request with no match from the city,

02:40though the city would be responsible for

02:41overages.

02:44>> Right. Yeah, that was going to

02:46uh be my questions about the match. So,

02:51um

02:54And this is Like you said, this is the

02:56second time we're applying for this.

02:59>> That's correct.

03:00>> Right. All right.

03:09Any questions?

03:12>> Do you expect it to go much beyond $2

03:14million, or do you think it's pretty

03:16much going to be at the $2 million mark?

03:18>> We feel we're pretty close to the $2

03:20million mark. It Depending on the state

03:23of the economy and things like that, it

03:24may go a little bit over, but it's not

03:26going to be millions over. It may be,

03:29you know, a couple hundred thousand here

03:30or there. I think is what we're looking

03:32at in terms of the budget.

03:35>> And just as background, I think um

03:39the

03:43the the folks who own the Continental

03:46Gin Company property have been,

03:49you know, very supportive of this

03:50project. Um

03:53They're trying to

03:55redevelop

03:57uh

03:58that property, repurpose it um

04:00from its former industrial use and

04:04um

04:06access, you know, is a is a big

04:09factor for potential tenants. So, that

04:13like you said that left turn

04:16access

04:18um is important for them. Um

04:21>> I would also point out too that this

04:23design was a recommendation from the

04:262020 Crestwood Boulevard Apple Study as

04:29well. Um and we've already implemented

04:31three of those recommendations. The

04:33sidewalk in 56th Street, the roundabout

04:35at 56th and 10th, as well as the

04:38tightening up at the intersection of

04:3956th and 9th. So, this is just a

04:41continued implementation of that already

04:44done that we paid for plan and study.

04:56>> And what what's the timeline on

04:58consideration for these grant

05:00applications?

05:02>> So,

05:04the grant is due I think November 13th.

05:08Um they typically ALDOT usually meets in

05:10December and makes announcements in late

05:12January or early February.

05:15>> Okay.

05:17All right.

05:38All right.

05:39>> I move that we approve this item.

05:41>> Okay. Um second. So, that will move

05:44forward with a recommendation for

05:46approval from the

05:48committee. The next up we have a

05:50interlocal cooperation agreement with

05:52Jefferson County for

05:54improvements on to Rex Lake Road.

05:57>> Yes, this um is a continuation of our

06:00regular partnership with the county on

06:03uh projects on roads that are adjacent

06:06to and in and out of our jurisdictions.

06:09Um the county approached us. They're

06:10going to be paving Edwards Lake Road or

06:14sorry, not uh Rex Lake Road, excuse me.

06:17Um over

06:18by Leeds and the Barber Motorsports

06:21Park. Um and they approached us about

06:24whether we'd want to partner. Um the our

06:27section of the road, the PCI score is

06:30not quite to the point where we would

06:32necessarily be surfacing, but in the

06:33next several years we probably would and

06:35the price point that we can get in

06:37partnering with the county is so much

06:39better than what we could do in-house.

06:41So, this is a good opportunity for us to

06:43save some money now and have a

06:45consistent roadway through both

06:46jurisdictions.

06:50>> Yeah, so that that

06:52Rex Lake Road is in several

06:54jurisdictions depending depending on

06:56where you are on that road, right? Um

06:59I think over near the highway 78 and

07:03it's Leeds and

07:05it goes to Birmingham and then it goes

07:06to Jefferson County.

07:08>> Yes.

07:09>> Yeah. And then back to Birmingham and

07:11then back to Jefferson County.

07:13Yeah, so

07:14>> Uh there this this partnership effort

07:16has been extremely I think fruitful and

07:18and popular and it's just good to keep,

07:21you know, the

07:22the muscle memory of doing these with

07:24the county.

07:25>> Right.

07:48So, the total project cost is

07:53a little over 96,000.

07:56Um do we know

07:57>> That's the Birmingham portion.

07:59>> The Birmingham portion.

08:00>> Yes.

08:01>> Oh, wow.

08:04>> So, it's a pretty significant project.

08:07>> Yeah.

08:08But according to the summary, we have

08:13a little over a tenth of a mile.

08:16>> Yeah, but it's it's incredibly wide.

08:18If you think about it, it's it's a I

08:19think it's a five- or six-lane section.

08:22>> Okay, so this is the portion up near

08:24Barber Motorsports Park.

08:25>> is That's that portion, exactly. Not the

08:27two-lane section further down.

08:29>> Okay.

08:33So, you have curb and gutter They are

08:36there

08:36>> Yeah, exactly.

08:39It's a very sizable project that again

08:41in I would say in about

08:43five to six years, we would have to do

08:45it in-house and we're not going to be

08:46able to get that kind of a price.

08:49>> Okay.

08:54Got you.

09:09So, are they is

09:12Jefferson County doing the entire

09:16segment of Rex Lake Road from Highway 78

09:18to Grants Mill?

09:19>> Not the all the way to Grants Mill.

09:21They're doing just the multi-lane

09:23section from Highway 78 to just past

09:26Barber.

09:27>> Okay.

09:28All right.

09:35I think there may be some

09:38subsurface issues there with subsidence

09:41and

09:41>> That's also part of the cost, yeah.

09:43>> Okay.

09:45That makes a little more sense. All

09:47right.

09:49Any questions? All right. I'll make a

09:52motion that we recommend this to the

09:54council for approval.

09:56>> Second.

09:57>> All right, so that will move forward

09:58with our recommendation.

10:01>> Thank you.

10:01>> Next up, we have

10:03um

10:05the Birmingham Parking Authority Board

10:07of Directors, um Mr. Jeff Havercroft, uh

10:12has

10:13served one term and,

10:18is eligible to be reappointed and

10:23had a brief conversation with Mr. Davis,

10:26um,

10:27and

10:28it's his recommendation that we, uh,

10:32reappoint Mr. Havercroft.

10:35Um,

10:37I think these are

10:41four-year terms, if I remember

10:44correctly.

10:47Yeah.

10:47>> Okay.

10:48>> Um, Mr. Havercroft's, uh,

10:51engineer, civil engineer, um,

10:55so, you know, he brings that expertise

10:58to to the board.

11:00Um,

11:04yeah. And and he's an attorney, so,

11:09lots of useful skills for the

11:12board of directors.

11:15Any questions?

11:16All right, so,

11:18I make a motion that we recommend

11:21Mr. Havercroft for reappoint to the

11:24BPA.

11:25>> Second.

11:26>> All right, so, that will move forward.

11:29Any new or old business we need to

11:31discuss?

11:34All right.

11:36I make a motion to adjourn.

11:39>> All right, second.

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