Birmingham City Council Regular Meeting – September 30, 2025

The Birmingham City Council met in regular session on September 30, 2025, at 9:30 a.m. in the Council Chambers. The meeting was called to order with a prayer by Firefighter/Chaplain Brian Blakes and the Pledge of Allegiance led by Council President Darrell O'Quinn. Six council members were present (O'Quinn, Abbott, Smitherman, Tate, Williams, Woods); Councilmembers Clarke, Moore, and Alexander were absent. The pre-council meeting scheduled for 9:00 a.m. was not held due to lack of a quorum. The council approved a consent agenda en bloc and then considered several items individually, including a zoning change, a public safety surveillance contract amendment, UAB football ticket purchase, East Lake street improvements, and recycling cart procurement. Public comment was received from one speaker.

Consent Calendar

• Liquor Licenses (Items 2–4): Approved for Daiquiri Factory (Lounge Retail Liquor Class I), B&W Entertainment for Event 84 (Special Retail Liquor 160), and Swing Away Golf Club (Special Retail Liquor 160).
• Non-Emergency Medical Transport Permits (Items 5–6): Granted to Good Hands Transport/Transporter, LLC and Fanzi Transportation.
• Weed Abatement Assessments (Items 7–16): Approvals of special assessments totaling tens of thousands of dollars against numerous properties for abatement of noxious weeds, as declared in earlier resolutions (e.g., Resolution Nos. 269-25, 287-24, 270-25, 776-24, 402-25, 403-25, 632-23, 531-24, 526-25, 01-23).
• Budget Amendments (Items 17–23): Approved amendments to the General Fund, Donations Fund, Capital Improvement Fund, Grants Fund, Grants Match Fund, Neighborhood Fund, and Neighborhood Allocation Fund for various purposes, including $36,150 for Park and Recreation (insurance proceeds), $2,500 for Memorial Park learning programs (donation), $23,872 for condemnation case reimbursement, $75,000 for AmeriCorps VISTA, $74,886 for AmeriCorps VISTA grant match, $2,000 to Acipco-Finley Neighborhood Association (District 9 discretionary), and $171,000 to Bush Hills Neighborhood Association for landscape improvements (District 8).
• Various Contracts and Purchases (Items 24–46): Approved multiple resolutions authorizing agreements, purchases, and expense accounts. Items removed from consent (see below) were considered separately. Notable approvals include a three-year agreement with DataWorks Plus for police mugshot/fingerprinting systems ($149,080), a memorandum of understanding with Kingston Neighborhood Association for a neighborhood sign, a Lexipol Fire Policy subscription ($33,174.99), a second amendment to the Friends of Rickwood Field management fee ($275,000), a Thomson Reuters software license agreement ($292,842), a UAHSF professional services agreement for employee health services ($750,000 over three years), purchase of UAB football tickets (discussed below), approval of bids for portable toilets, transmission repair, golf cart parts, painting services, wreck repairs, recycling carts (discussed below), John Deere parts, expense accounts for city employees, and installation of fire hydrants on Redding Way.

The consent agenda was moved by Councilmember Williams, seconded by Councilmember Smitherman, and adopted unanimously (6-0).

Discussion Items

• Zoning Change – 1219 19th Street South (Item 1): Ordinance ZAC2025-000018 to rezone a 0.37-acre parcel from C-O&I and QB-3 to C-1 (Neighborhood Commercial District). The applicant, St. Mary's on the Highlands, seeks to create an overflow parking lot. The property is owned by Drennen Memorial Trust. The Five Points South Neighborhood Association voted 10-0 in support. The Zoning Advisory Committee and Planning and Zoning Committee both recommended approval unanimously. No public comments were offered. The ordinance was adopted unanimously (6-0).

• Second Amendment to Public Safety Surveillance Contract with Alabama Power (Item 24): Resolution authorizing the Mayor to execute a second amendment to the existing master contract for public safety surveillance equipment. This amendment adds one 14-foot black metal pole, six Flock Safety Falcon license plate recognition cameras with solar panels, and cameras at four railroad crossing locations, to be connected to the Real Time Crime Center. The total amount paid to Alabama Power Company increases to not exceed $9,904,068.02. Funding comes from various sources including DOJ BJA FY24 Real Time Crime Center grant. Councilmember Smitherman noted the cameras are for validating train detection devices and for additional security. The resolution was adopted unanimously (6-0).

• Purchase of UAB Football Tickets (Item 31): Resolution authorizing the purchase of 1,200 tickets per UAB home game during the 2025 season at a total cost of $200,000, to be distributed to city employees, youth groups, and neighborhood associations. Councilmember Williams spoke in support, noting that the city's hotel room night stays were up 12.5% compared to benchmarks, indicating economic benefits from such events. The resolution stated the purchase serves a public purpose including economic development and tourism. Adopted unanimously (6-0).

• East Lake Safe Streets Right-of-Way Improvements (Item 33): Resolution accepting the lump sum bid of Gillespie Construction, LLC ($372,482) for the ENG 2025-004 project, which replaces Jersey barriers with permanent curbing at over a dozen locations in East Lake. Councilmember Abbott asked about the number of locations; Director of Capital Projects Denise Bale confirmed all locations are included, and renderings showed planters and trees. The resolution was adopted unanimously (6-0).

• Purchase of Recycling Carts (Item 41): Resolution approving payment to Rehrig Pacific Company for 65-gallon Pepsi Blue NB carts (recycling containers) in the amount of $265,363.20. Councilmember Abbott clarified that these are recycling carts to address a backlog of 5,085 orders. The item was adopted unanimously (6-0).

Key Outcomes

• The consent agenda, including all routine items and public hearings, was approved in a single motion (6-0).
• The zoning ordinance for the St. Mary's parking lot passed (6-0).
• The surveillance contract amendment with Alabama Power Company was adopted (6-0).
• The UAB football ticket purchase resolution was adopted (6-0).
• The East Lake Safe Streets contract was awarded to Gillespie Construction (6-0).
• The recycling cart purchase was approved (6-0).

Public Comments & Testimony

• Artis Murphy addressed the council regarding spiritual awareness in leadership. He spoke about the importance of faith, referenced a recent incident involving Councilmember J.T. Moore, and urged the council to follow God's guidance. No other public comments were made on agenda items.

Announcements

• Councilmember Abbott announced upcoming neighborhood meetings, the installation of an accessible playground at Bessie Estelle Park, and reminded the public about the My Bham 311 app.
• Councilmember Smitherman thanked Brenda Hong for the 14th annual Sister Strut event and listed neighborhood meetings.
• Councilmember Tate announced meetings in District 9 and the rescheduling of the State of the District address.
• Councilmember Woods listed several neighborhood meetings and recognized a cleanup at Tom Bradford Park (60 pounds of microplastics removed).
• Councilmember O'Quinn announced the OnePlace Family Justice Center Relentless Hope breakfast and the Alabama Symphony Orchestra Goes Wild at the Zoo event on October 5.
• The meeting adjourned at 10:42 a.m.