Rendering courtesy of Jefferson County.
This rendering shows the finished product for the widening of the Hollywood Boulevard bridge over U.S. 280 and new pedestrian path.
Mountain Brook Mayor Graham Smith and Homewood Mayor Jennifer Andress both said they’re excited to see improvements to Hollywood Boulevard finally underway.
Construction workers in early August began work on the first phase of a project to widen the road where it crosses U.S. 280 and add a sidewalk connecting Mountain Brook and Homewood and going across the bridge over U.S. 280.
Still shot from city of Homewood video.
Mountain Brook Mayor Graham Smith and Homewood Mayor Jennifer Andress do a public service announcement video about the Hollywood Boulevard improvement project.
“What they’re doing is what we consider phase one, which is not the actual bridge section of Hollywood,” said Chris Nicholson, the director of Jefferson County’s Roads and Transportation Department. “It is on both [ends] of the bridge, the Mountain Brook side and the Homewood side.”
Phase one includes the installation of a sidewalk along the northern side of Hollywood Boulevard. On the Mountain Brook side, it will go from the Brookhill neighborhood to the U.S. 280 westbound exit ramp. On the Homewood side, it will go from Union Hill Drive near the Union Hill Cemetery to Malaga Avenue.
The eastern (Homewood) portion of the road also is being widened to three lanes and restriped. The project includes some curbs and gutters and other improvements for pedestrians.
Southeastern Sealcoating is the contractor doing the job for $680,990. The initial cost of phase one was $1.2 million, but that was reduced when intersection work was shifted to phase two.
Photo by Solomon Crenshaw Jr.
Construction workers walk on a sidewalk being built along Hollywood Boulevard.
The sidewalk project probably should be completed in the next five months, Nicholson said.
“As soon as that’s done, we’ll bid out the bridge,” he said. “That’ll take another year or so to complete. … We just had to leave the bridge part out because we’re doing that with federal dollars.”
Smith said phase one won’t require any detours, but it could involve some lane closures.
“Just unfortunate temporary holdups as they have to shut down and make it one lane at a time,” she said. “They have traffic control out there.”
The holdups are just part of the growing pains of progress, Smith said.
“The benefit will come down the road as with all construction projects,” she said. “Yes, there will be a slight headache. But we’re trying to do our best. I asked the construction manager if there would be any night work done, and they said that was definitely in the cards. Hopefully a little bit will be done during the night.”
Rendering courtesy of Jefferson County.
A rendering shows what the Hollywood Boulevard overpass over U.S. 280 will look like upon completion, complete with a new pedestrian path on the bridge.
Phase one is being funded by the cities of Mountain Brook and Homewood, Jefferson County and money that was raised by the Hollywood Cooperative Group, including some money from the Alabama Department of Transportation, Nicholson said.
Jefferson County’s portion of the money originally was allocated out of former County Commissioner Steve Ammons’ discretionary money, but his successor in District 5, Mike Bolin, held the money in place for the Hollywood project.
Some of the money also came from federal allocations arranged by U.S. Sen. Katie Britt, Andress said.
“I got to tell her directly that we were breaking ground,” Andress said. “It would not have happened without the funding that she sent us through her appropriations. … Every level of government has supported this project. We’re just so grateful to be there.”
Phase two construction could begin in the summer of 2027 and will include widening the bridge over U.S. 280 to three lanes and adding a pedestrian lane that ties the Mountain Brook and Homewood sidewalks together. Once complete, Hollywood Boulevard will be three lanes from Union Hill Drive to the point where it becomes Montevallo Road, and the new sidewalks in Mountain Brook and Homewood will be tied together.
The estimated construction cost for phase two is $4.4 million, but that job still has to be bid out. Funding for phase two is coming from ALDOT, the Metropolitan Planning Organization and Jefferson County.
Andress said that when this sidewalk is complete, “we’re already going to have new massive safety improvements,” but she’s also eager to see the expanded bridge get put in place. “I’m so happy this day is here.”
