Mayor gives annual State of the City address to chamber

In his ninth State of the City address, Homewood Mayor Scott McBrayer referenced Abraham Lincoln and former governor Albert Brewer, who recently passed away, as models for character and vision in running a city.

At the start of his speech, delivered to the Homewood Chamber of Commerce on Jan. 17 at The Club, McBrayer took time to recognize city council members and employees of various city departments at the luncheon. He said the fire department responded to 3,983 calls in 2016, an increase of about 400 from 2015. Most of those calls were for medical services, but about 136 were for fires and 102 for hazardous conditions. The police department responded to 39,123 calls this past year, made 16,444 traffic stops and reduced crime in burglary, robbery, vehicle breaking and entering and other major crime categories.

"I don't know how you did that," McBrayer told Police Chief Tim Ross.

Since his last address, McBrayer said there are several new projects around the city in the works, including renovation of the Wildwood shopping center, progress on Lakeshore Parkway's diverging diamond interchange and plans for new restaurants and retail near Patriot Park, in the former Edgewood Garage and at Brookwood Village.

The city began its year by balancing the budget with $800,000 in carryover funds, but McBrayer said his goal is always to end a fiscal year with a surplus, and that he would be "very embarrassed to stand up here and say we spent more than we brought in."

The city has had a budget surplus every year of McBrayer's mayoral tenure, averaging $804,000 per year. The city has also built up a rainy day fund of $10.9 million.

"When you have a surplus, you have options," McBrayer said.

But those large numbers don't go very far when it comes to running a city. McBrayer said day to day operations in Homewood cost about $100,000 per day.

"When you brag about a $800,000 surplus, I think, 'Lord, that's eight days,'" McBrayer said.

In addition to keeping the city running, McBrayer said keeping a surplus and financially sound city helps Homewood take on larger projects like the greenway, Lakeshore diverging diamond interchange and the recent $110 million bond project to fund schools, parks and public safety improvements. 

"Homewood continues to move forward despite the economy and despite the nay-sayers," he said.

Road paving and sidewalk construction will continue moving forward, and McBrayer noted the Valley and West Valley Avenue paving project is now scheduled for completion at the end of February. Special attention will also be paid to the Rosedale area for sidewalks, nuisance home abatement and Spring Park improvements. 

McBrayer said former governor Brewer was a mentor to him at Samford and a close personal friend for years. McBrayer turned to him for advice when he first decided to run for mayor in 2008, and Brewer leaned on McBrayer after his wife's passing. McBrayer said he was always impressed by the way his mentor "always treated people like they were somebody."

That attitude of service is something he encourages in city staff, McBrayer said, along with the ability to recognize their responsibilities and obligations in the community.

After McBrayer's address, the city gave out some of its annual awards:

• Firefighter of the Year: Apparatus operator Jeff Dansby at Station 2, a 13-year HFD employee who Chief John Bresnan said is known for his attention to detail and knowledge of the department's equipment.
• Police Officer of the Year: Trent Ricketts, a four-year officer who Ross said is among the most productive in the department and is involved both in SWAT as a marksman observer and in training new officers.
• City Employee of the Year: Senior traffic technician Randy Hambley, who has been with the city for 24 years. He handles all aspects of traffic in the city, including roadwork, studies and other projects. Hambley's grandfather was a Homewood police chief and his parents met because his mother worked at city hall and his father worked in the public works department.

McBrayer said the full slideshow that accompanied his State of the City address will be available on the city website, homewoodal.net.