Jeff Foster running for City Council in Ward 5, Place 2

Ward 5’s Jeff Foster announced he is running for City Council in Ward 5, Place 2 in the upcoming election.

Foster, 40, spent the past nine years serving as both a member and vice chair of the Board of Zoning Adjustments and the Planning Commission. He is the program director at the University of Alabama at Birmingham in the division of clinical immunology and rheumatology, and he is the deputy director of the Center for Outcomes and Effectiveness Research and Education.

If elected, Foster said he wants to ensure purposeful, strategic planning and development of downtown Homewood. 

“Though we may not notice it in our everyday lives, there is not a single area of our city that is not affected by planning and zoning,” he said. “Regulations and codes governing land use and the scope or scale of development have enormous impact on both the look and feel of our downtown, but they also significantly impact our neighborhoods, our school system and our city’s economy. We must equip our city with ordinances and zoning that protect and preserve our vibrant and unique community but also provide the opportunity for innovative and purposefully strategic development in our business districts that maintains the character of Homewood.”

Next, Foster said he supports the hiring of a full-time city manager.

“This position would provide day-to-day management of our city departments as well as work with the mayor, council and the city’s commissions and boards to ensure that Homewood is operating efficiently, effectively and transparently,” he said.

Foster said he wants the city website to have a portal for residents to report non-emergency issues. The website should serve as a central hub for city news, updates and business, he said. The city should provide an option to submit forms electronically, he said.

Last, he said the stormwater management plan needs more defined guidance for property owners and developers.

Foster received a bachelor’s degree in biomedical sciences from Auburn University and a master’s degree in epidemiology from the University of Alabama at Birmingham.

For more information, visit foster4ward5.com