Homewood City Hall
The Public Works Committee voted to recommend the city applying for a “Transportation Alternative Program” that would extend sidewalks and bike lanes on Central Avenue along Griffin Creek.
Portions of Central Avenue, from 27th Court South to 27th Avenue South, would become a one-way to make room for the changes, said City Engineer Cale Smith. The sidewalks would begin in front of Iron Tribe Fitness before stretching north behind Harbison Lock and Key and running along the creek.
The project was first discussed in 2018, preceding a 2019 APPLE study for the section that extended north to Nilipour Rugs and connecting to 18th Street, Smith said. The grant can be funded either by the Alabama Department of Transportation or the Regional Planning Commission of Greater Birmingham. The project is an 80-20 match and Smith said it will cost about $1 million, putting the city on the hook for about $200,000 or $300,000. The project can be done in phases, meaning the city does not have to pay the whole amount now.
The sidewalks would connect Spring Park to Central Park, Smith said. Jefferson County has already hired engineers for a project they are doing in the area. That project, funded by a grant the county awarded the city last year, will bring sidewalks from Spring Park to 18th Street.
Applications for the grant are due at the end of June. The full council will vote on whether to authorize the application at the June 27 meeting.
The committee also heard an update on the formation of the city’s stormwater master plan.
Kirk Mills with Kimley-Horn, which is overseeing the project, said the group is currently collecting data and surveying priority areas. They will be providing public feedback in the months to come, as well as creating models and possible projects for the city to explore.
The group has come up with 13 regulation recommendations, focusing on channel protection, water detention, velocity control and more, along with recommending more stormwater education and a “stormwater checklist” the city could use in the future to alleviate flooding problems.
The plan is for the project to be complete by the end of the first quarter of 2023, allowing the city to create some projects to be funded during fiscal 2023.
