Tuscaloosa City Council Budget Hearing – Arts, Entertainment, Parks, and Public Works (September 2, 2025)
Tuscaloosa City Council Budget Hearing – Arts, Entertainment, Parks, and Public Works
The Tuscaloosa City Council held a budget hearing on September 2, 2025, beginning at approximately 1:30 PM. The meeting focused on department budgets for Arts and Entertainment, CFG (Construction Facilities and Grounds), the Office of the City Engineer (OCE), Public Works, Human Resources, Urban Development, and Strategic Communications. Key discussions included the financial outlook for the Mercedes-Benz Amphitheater, the Saban Center project's capital and operating plans, staffing challenges in public works and CFG, and the city's evolving role in park maintenance.
Public Comments & Testimony
- No public comments were heard during this session.
Discussion Items
Arts and Entertainment (Ms. Day)
- Overview: The department oversees the Gateway, River Market, Special Events, and the Mercedes-Benz Amphitheater with 19 full-time positions (two vacancies). In the past year, they coordinated 271 events, processed 103 permits, and handled 20 commemorative lighting requests. Permits are evaluated collaboratively with TPD, Fire & Rescue, and CFG, always prioritizing safety.
- Gateway Budget: The Gateway budget was reduced by $67,000. Staffing was scaled down to one full-time employee and one part-time hire, and hours changed to Monday through Friday. The city had explored a potential partnership with Focus involving a nominal lease and $1.5 million in improvements but could not reach an agreement. The city is now reviewing other options for the facility, which was originally built as a technology library after the 2011 tornado.
- Holidays on the Plaza: The event will open November 24, 2025 (the Monday before Thanksgiving) and close on New Year's Day 2026—matching the Tinsel Trail schedule—totaling 33 days and 273 operational hours. Sunday hours are extended from 1–5 PM to 1–8 PM. Single-day passes remain at $15. The event had a budgeted loss of $27,000 in the prior year (budgeted total $205,156, actual $27,000 shortfall), driven largely by chiller and glycol costs.
- Mayor's Cup: The 17th annual event drew over 2,054 participants (the largest ever). After covering all expenses, the event generated a donation of nearly $5,000 to pre-K programs. 2025 proceeds were slightly lower due to additional security costs.
- Live at the Plaza: The free concert series draws over 3,000 people per event but operates at a loss of about $10,000 per season, partly due to weather cancellations. The department is working to increase sponsorships.
- Mercedes-Benz Amphitheater: Ms. Day explained that the amphitheater is undergoing a transition. She decided to stop booking shows mid-year because ticket sales were weak nationwide. The Red Mountain Entertainment contract ended in December 2024, and the new booking partner, DWP, took over at a disadvantage because most tours are locked in by October. The amphitheater faced competition from the new Coca-Cola Amphitheater, a Live Nation venue that secured many shows the city sought. DWP brings expertise in festivals (e.g., Bourbon and Beyond) and amphitheater management, and several major acts are already on hold for the 2026 season. The city's entertainment attorneys assist with contract review.
CFG – Construction Facilities and Grounds (Mr. Eric)
- Budget & Staffing: CFG has 130 budgeted positions, currently down by 16 (12%), primarily in grounds. The proposed operating budget is virtually flat, with a net decrease of $13,000–$14,000 in non-personnel expenses. Elevate-funded park maintenance (e.g., Shelby Park) is reimbursed through a separate fund.
- Parks Maintenance: CFG now maintains 11 city parks (including Shelby, Carlton, Spring Route, and others) under an evolving arrangement with PARA. The city's goal is to maintain the physical assets (mowing, restrooms, trash) while PARA handles programming (sports leagues, tennis center). Councilmember Busby raised concerns about the city accumulating a "stealth parks department" without a dedicated parks division. The mayor responded that the approach is deliberate and partnered with PARA, and that the city's parks also serve as public safety hubs with enhanced lighting and cameras.
- Staffing Challenges: The biggest challenge is fully staffing the grounds division. CFG loses employees to Public Works and ESD due to higher pay in those departments. The vacancy rate is typical (around 10%) but has been exacerbated by retirements and competition from other city departments.
Office of the City Engineer (OCE) (Mr. Bill)
- Staffing: OCE has 25 personnel (including four inspectors funded by Water and Sewer). Three vacancies exist. A new Deputy City Engineer position was added to assist the City Engineer with management and standardization. The department is also increasing professional engineering licenses across the team.
- Bridge Inspection Program: The bridge inspection program was transferred from Public Works to OCE, accounting for the increase in outside services in the budget.
- Professional Development: The city is funding continuing education and licensing for engineers to maintain professional certifications.
Public Works (Mr. Selvin)
- Staffing: Public Works has 91 positions across four divisions (Administration, Streets & Drainage, Traffic, Fleet). Currently 23% vacancy (15-16 positions), largely in Streets & Drainage (38% vacancy). Two-thirds of vacancies are from retirements; one-third from mismatches between career aspirations and job expectations. Two retirees have returned as part-time concrete finishers.
- Efficiency Strategies: The department is cross-training heavy equipment operators and strategically scheduling work to cover multiple crews. They are also evaluating whether to fill every vacancy or redesign positions for efficiency.
- Animal Control: Four staff members (one supervisor, three officers) operate four vehicles under the Traffic division.
- Budget: Overall operating budget decreased by $1,093,159 due to transfer of sweeper services to ESD. Most line items are level-funded, with adjustments to reflect actual spending (e.g., a $180,000 increase in traffic repair supplies, a $61,326 increase in tip fees for Streets & Drainage).
- Biggest Challenge: Time and patience. The department is rethinking workflows and allocation of staff while simultaneously maintaining daily service levels.
Human Resources (Ms. Kemplin)
- Staffing: 15 budgeted positions, 13 filled. Two vacancies: Safety Director (actively recruiting) and one HR Specialist (put on hold for six months to generate savings; the position may be eliminated if workflows allow).
- Recruiting: A dedicated Public Safety Recruiter (Melissa Adcock) works with TPD and Fire on recruiting. TPD has two officers; Fire relies on HR. The city is revamping its recruitment website to be more engaging.
- CDL Program: The in-house CDL training program, now under ESD, has an outstanding pass rate. The program emphasizes safety, including pre-trip inspections.
- Biggest Challenge: Upskilling employees for AI integration and the rising cost of health insurance. HR is partnering with educational institutions and city operations to prepare for AI.
Urban Development (Ms. Kreitz)
- Staffing: 41 employees across four divisions (Building & Inspections – 20, Codes & Development Services – 10, Planning – 7, Administration – 4). Five vacancies, typical for the office (~12% vacancy rate). The Director of Building & Inspections position is still open; a second round of interviews is scheduled for the following day.
- Codes & Permitting: 311 cases are up 36%, with a focus on overgrown grass enforcement. The new unified development code (Chapter 25) has improved clarity and predictability for applicants. The department is working to modernize building permit applications (moving from paper to technology-based systems).
- Planning: The subdivision regulation updates are wrapping up and will go to the Planning & Zoning Commission, not the Council.
- Biggest Challenge: Balancing responsiveness to external stakeholders with the need for innovation. The department wants to reduce reliance on paper and manual data entry to minimize errors.
Strategic Communications (Ms. Cheryl)
- Restructuring: The department has undergone significant changes. The executive secretary and deputy director positions were eliminated (their salary lines funded a new Government Relations and External Affairs position under the Mayor's Office). Two AV personnel were transferred to IT. Instead of hiring two managers (PR and marketing), one Marketing & Communications Manager will oversee both functions. A new Office Administrator position will handle payroll and personnel.
- Staffing: Six 311 call center representatives and one manager (unchanged). The 311 center moved to Strategic Communications about three years ago.
- Budget: Salaries and benefits decreased by $279,000 due to the restructuring. Recruitment and public education line items were reduced by moving travel costs for police, fire, and ESD personnel back to their own departments. The department also consolidated software subscriptions (e.g., dropped LastPass in favor of IT's password manager).
- Recruiting Strategy: A comprehensive marketing and communication strategy for police and fire recruitment is developed jointly with HR, TPD, and TFR. The current strategy uses A/B testing: ads in the Birmingham area emphasize safety and family-friendliness; ads in rural areas highlight compensation and advanced equipment.
Key Outcomes
- No formal votes were taken; the meeting was a budget work session.
- The council will continue agency presentations the following day.
- The council directed staff to provide a detailed pro forma for the Saban Center's first full year of operations (fiscal 2028), including interconnectivity with Ignite (formerly CHOM), NYX Kids, and the STEM Hub.
- The city will continue to explore options for the Gateway facility, aiming for a "dynamic" use that serves the community.
- Public Works will develop a strategic plan to address high vacancy rates and improve efficiency.
- Strategic Communications will finalize the recruitment website revamp and continue collaborative recruiting efforts for police officers.
Meeting Transcript
Phil. We'll be here about two hours and a half, two hours and fifteen minutes this morning. I noticed from some of the spaces, some of you aren't presenting. I appreciate you being here. It may pick up something. Thanks for that. We're gonna go through some of the staff sections today. I have reserved some of the staff sections to be spread out over the open space on finance agenda. Um I think it's the ninth and the 16th. So if you didn't get your turn Tuesday or today, don't worry, we're gonna get to you. Um there's nothing. Brandy came and talked to me. There's no big ritual here. Uh this is for us to understand what you think you need, why you think you need it? What happens if you get it? What happens if you don't get it? Pretty simple stuff, straightforward. Um where is Dr. Day? She's hiding in the back. You drew the short straw, doc. Come on up. Good morning. Good morning. Um let's kill a moment or two with pleasantries till Mr. Crow shows up. There's a kind of a big piece that's a change today, I think. Typically, we're gonna hear Saban Center, which obviously is uh it's a big big deal, but it's gonna show up under your aegis here. Yes, what was the logic there? For the savings center being under arts and entertainment, um, I think Carly would be able to answer that better than me. So the grouping of the um of the expenditures is really just about um financial uh cost centers. Um it's really much more of a financial reporting issue and not necessarily a department conglomeration issue. So Saban Center is not really under arts and entertainment as far as a department goes. It is it's really it's really its own operating entity and section, it's just because it is within the categorization. So not from an operational standpoint, really from a financial from a financial reporting standpoint. All right, uh see Mr. Crow, we saved you a seat center, center stage down here. Very much appreciated, Mr. Chairman. Thank you, Ms. Bay. And and Kay, if you would um when you start, just uh ease us down into how you've organized your department and report it. Okay. Um so under Arts and Entertainment, we have the gateway, we have the river market, we have special events, and we have the Mercedes Benz Amphitheater. That all comes under Arts and Entertainment. Um I'd like to point out under special events, we also do all the permitting for the parks, uh, parades, different things like that, um, and uh all the commemorative lighting requests goes through them. So basically for last year, we managed to combine 271 events, process 103 permits, and process 20 commemorative lighting requests. Give us some examples big and small of what you deal with there. Uh for our special events, uh um uh mayor's cup, decaf, holidays on the plaza, tech retreat, um, uh, or some of our bigger events, and then um smaller it I would say is are the processing of the permits, and we we when we do that, um I send y'all good morning. I send y'all um the report that we do every two weeks.
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