City Council Meeting Recap 6.16.20
Here is the video from the meeting:
Here are a few of the main items the Birmingham City Council discussed at the June 16th, 2020 Meeting
COVID-19 Pandemic Response
The Birmingham City Council approved a Resolution establishing that Coronavirus Pandemic Crisis Response activities, from now until April 2021, as public purposes, which authorizes the expenditure of up to $10,000 per event.
Council President William Parker said this is a crucial step toward continuing to educate the public about COVID-19 as well as ramping up testing throughout the city. The funding will also be used for billboards, commercials and informational campaigns.
As case numbers continue to increase, the City Council is focused on increasing access to information and resources to help combat the spread of COVID-19.
“Now is the time that we really start looking on how we expand testing through the end of the year,” President Parker said. “We’re going to have to make a concerted effort to educate residents in all 99 neighborhoods about how they can stay safe and where they can find resources and testing sites. Today’s item makes sure we have the funding in place to accomplish that.”
On Thursday, President Parker and Jefferson County Health Officials will be providing an update on the Legion Field testing site. More details will be made available on that event in the coming days.
Public Safety Infrastructure Upgrades
The Birmingham City Council voted to approve funding for several key public safety infrastructure upgrades:
· $1.5 Million to the development of the Birmingham Police Department’s Real Time Crime Center, which will allow the Police Department to have a better view of public safety concerns, in real time, across the city.
· $1 Million to the Code Enforcement division of the City’s Public Works Department
· $800,000 to the City’s Information Management Services Department for a Hardware and Software Infrastructure Overhaul.
Watch the video below for an explanation of how this technology upgrade will help the City better report and enforce code violations.
Century Plaza Property Rezoning
The Birmingham City Council voted to set a Public Hearing for July 14th to consider rezoning the Century Plaza property on Crestwood Blvd from Contingency General Business District to Qualified Light Manufacturing District in order to allow for the development of a 200,000 square-foot logistics center that could bring over 300 jobs to District 2.
The Century Plaza Mall has been shuttered since 2009 and Councilor Hunter Williams, who represents the district, said this has been a major point of concern for residents over the years.
“One thing residents on the eastern side of Birmingham have been asking for is the repurposing of the old Century Plaza Mall,” Williams said. “While many options have been considered over the years, unfortunately, none of those options materialized due to the immense cost associated with rehabbing or demolishing the shuttered mall. This new facility, along with the VA Center that is currently being developed just down the street, will bring hundreds of jobs to Birmingham creating a huge synergy to the Crestwood Blvd corridor.”
Here are a few of the details of the proposed project:
· The facility will be a state-of-the-art class-A single-story building with concrete walls and glass features at the entry.
· The facility will provide significant jobs with over 1,400 delivery drivers operating to and from the property and over 320 associates and managers working within the premises.
· The proposed facility is designed for a package delivery service. Packages arriving at this facility are prepackaged in cardboard boxes and labeled for shipping within local neighborhoods and areas surrounding the facility. The packages are brought into the facility via semi trucks, using designated loading dock positions. The model limits the number of large trucks that would arrive at the facility in order to mitigate traffic concerns.
