City Council – Highlights from the May 11, 2017 Meeting

Published on May 12, 2017

Public Safety

Council voted to approve a $374,850 architectural services contract with William M. Boehme & Associates to design and oversee construction of a new Public Safety Training Facility to be located on about 18 acres of land at the southern end of Triana Boulevard. General Services Director Jeff Easter expects the design process to take about a year. When complete, the project will be bid and construction should take about another year. The City estimates the new complex will cost about $5.2 million and will contain a 35,000 square foot facility along with ancillary structures for fire and police training. Outside public safety entities may be allowed to lease the facility for their training, providing the City with an additional source of revenue. Police and fire are temporarily using the old Johnson High School campus for their academies and training.

Public Transit

Greyhound Lines, Inc. entered into a contract with Huntsville Public Transit to move their bus operations from a building on Holmes Avenue to the City bus terminal on Cleveland Avenue. Parking and Public Transit Director Tommy Brown says Greyhound will pay the City about $94,000 per year, plus some commission fees, to manage their ticketing, luggage, and transit services. The contract begins May 15, 2017.  “It’s a good collaboration between the City and Greyhound, better serves the customer, and it puts a nice piece of downtown property back on the real estate market,” said Brown. Greyhound’s terminal on Holmes Avenue is under contract to be sold to a private developer.

Transportation

Council approved $897,413 in engineering design services to widen a 2.3 mile segment of Restore Our Roads for SR 255 (Research Park Boulevard). Volkert, Inc., will design a six-lane roadway and interchange improvements for the well-traveled section of Research Park Boulevard from Highway 72/Old Madison Pike to I-565/Gate 9 entrance at Redstone Arsenal.

Board Appointments

Bhavani Kakani and David Smith – reappointed to the Health Care Authority of the City of Huntsville for a term to expire April 15, 2023. (Nominated by Jennie Robinson)

For more information, view Council Agendas and Minutes or watch video recordings of the Council Meetings on the City’s YouTube channel.