OPENPUBLICA · PUBLIC MEETING RECORD
Record of Proceedings

Tuscaloosa City Council Committee Meeting – October 7, 2025

City Council Meetings — Tuesday, October 7, 2025
BodyTuscaloosa, Alabama
SessionCity Council Meetings
DateTuesday, October 7, 2025
StatusFILED
Video Record
0:00 / 34:16

Transcript — Verbatim
0:00

So move second.

0:01

All in favor?

0:02

Aye.

0:03

All right.

0:03

Thank you.

0:04

Thank you.

0:06

Ms.

0:06

Herbert, we're going to talk about the police promotional contract.

0:16

Good afternoon, Council.

0:18

Good afternoon.

0:19

This is a request for our annual contract for the public safety promotional process.

0:25

This year is police.

0:28

We're requesting to enter to a contract with industrial organizational solutions for that process that starts in the spring.

0:37

What does it cost?

0:40

About what is it cost?

0:41

It's around 145,000.

0:44

And we do have it budgeted in our outside services line item.

0:48

Okay.

0:48

Okay.

0:49

Chief, are you okay with these folks?

0:51

Yes, sir.

0:52

Absolutely.

0:52

We'd use it for a long time.

0:53

Okay.

0:54

And what is the promotional process?

0:56

So the forgeant lieutenant.

1:01

Oh, promotion as in getting promoted from one rank to another.

1:06

Yes, sir.

1:06

Not promotional like marketing.

1:09

No, sir.

1:10

Okay.

1:11

Right.

1:12

All right.

1:12

Then a quick 60 second summary.

1:16

So each spring we have uh a week for each rank for the assessment centers.

1:23

And we bring it outside assessors, and they go through mock exercises.

1:30

Um there are written tests, there are structured interviews that each of the candidates go through, and they get a ranking and a score.

1:40

Um, and then it's that's part of the process that determines if they're promoted or not.

1:47

Then there's the second piece that goes to the chiefs.

1:52

Okay.

1:53

Okay, and this is a group we've been using, same process.

1:57

We've been doing this for years.

1:58

Yes, sir.

1:58

I don't have any other this is is about as fair as you can get it.

2:03

Completely different than when I was at the police department.

2:06

But uh do we have a motion?

2:07

Some of them second.

2:09

All in favor?

2:10

I thank you.

2:13

All righty.

2:15

Chief, you've got the next two.

2:17

Yes, sir.

2:18

I'll try and make towing as simple as possible.

2:20

Thank you.

2:21

It's only so simple.

2:23

Uh made handouts with the highlighted changes to kind of show you what we've changed in the order.

2:30

We believe this is a very fair.

2:33

Thank you.

2:34

Well, I know Chief Clark's worked on this a good bit.

2:37

I don't think he ever wants to see an ordinance change of tone again, honestly.

Discussion Breakdown — Share of Meeting
Community Engagement████████████████████████████████████36%
Procedural████████████12%
Technology and Innovation████████████12%
Facility Management███████████11%
Public Safety█████████9%
Alcohol Licenses█████████9%
Public Engagement██████6%
Mental Health Awareness█████5%
Summary of Proceedings

Tuscaloosa City Council Committee Meeting – October 7, 2025

This meeting, held on October 7, 2025, covered several items including the annual police promotional contract, amendments to the towing ordinance, a special retail license application, and a comprehensive performance review of the 311 service for fiscal year 2025. All items received unanimous approval.

Consent Calendar

  • Approved the annual contract with Industrial Organizational Solutions for the police promotional process at a cost of $145,000, budgeted in outside services. The process includes assessments for promotion from sergeant to lieutenant.

Discussion Items

  • Police Promotional Contract: Chief confirmed satisfaction with the vendor, noting the process has been used for years. The contract covers assessment centers with written tests, structured interviews, and rankings that factor into promotion decisions.
  • Towing Ordinance Amendments: Changes were approved in two separate votes: the non‑consensual towing rate increased from $185 to $210; rates for vehicles over 7,000 lbs or two axles set at $275; an oil‑dry fee of $25 added for fluid spills; storage rates equalized between rotation and non‑consensual towing; after‑hours release fee remains $75, but on game days lots are no longer required to stay open; a cooling‑off period allows refusal of release to intoxicated or violent individuals; and credit card fees may be passed to customers if disclosed in advance. Chief Clark led the negotiations.
  • Special Retail License Application: OBG Alumni Club Holdings, DBA the University Club, at 421 Queen City Avenue, applied for a special retail liquor license for more than 30 days. Proposed occupancy load is 639 people. Police had no objections. The application represented a change of ownership.
  • 311 Performance Report: Presented by 311 Director Clara Clark. Highlights include: 6 team members with over 150 years combined customer service experience; 98% of callers are answered in under 90 seconds; 62,000 total calls received, 38,000 of which were information‑only (data calls); 932 app installs; 36 in‑app notices sent; 350 manual request reroutes in FY2025; and monthly huddles covering teamwork, crisis management, and mental health. District‑by‑district breakdowns showed service‑level agreement compliance averaging 83%, with top request categories being water, other garbage/trash/recycling (6%), animal control (5%), code enforcement (4%), and missed garbage (3%). Future plans include social media response and increasing app downloads.

Key Outcomes

  • Police Promotional Contract: Motion carried unanimously.
  • Towing Ordinance Amendment (First Part): Motion carried unanimously.
  • Towing Ordinance Amendment (Second Part): Motion carried unanimously.
  • Special Retail License (The University Club): Motion carried unanimously.
  • Adjournment: Motion carried unanimously.

Meeting Transcript

So move second. All in favor? Aye. All right. Thank you. Thank you. Ms. Herbert, we're going to talk about the police promotional contract. Good afternoon, Council. Good afternoon. This is a request for our annual contract for the public safety promotional process. This year is police. We're requesting to enter to a contract with industrial organizational solutions for that process that starts in the spring. What does it cost? About what is it cost? It's around 145,000. And we do have it budgeted in our outside services line item. Okay. Okay. Chief, are you okay with these folks? Yes, sir. Absolutely. We'd use it for a long time. Okay. And what is the promotional process? So the forgeant lieutenant. Oh, promotion as in getting promoted from one rank to another. Yes, sir. Not promotional like marketing. No, sir. Okay. Right. All right. Then a quick 60 second summary. So each spring we have uh a week for each rank for the assessment centers. And we bring it outside assessors, and they go through mock exercises. Um there are written tests, there are structured interviews that each of the candidates go through, and they get a ranking and a score. Um, and then it's that's part of the process that determines if they're promoted or not. Then there's the second piece that goes to the chiefs. Okay. Okay, and this is a group we've been using, same process. We've been doing this for years. Yes, sir. I don't have any other this is is about as fair as you can get it. Completely different than when I was at the police department. But uh do we have a motion? Some of them second. All in favor? I thank you. All righty.

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