Photo by Solomon Crenshaw Jr.
Mountain Brook Council President Billy Pritchard presides over a council meeting in February 2026.
The long discussion about home occupancy in Mountain Brook could soon come to an end as council members this week set a special meeting to address the matter at 5 p.m. on July 9.
Council members have been debating for more than a year how to address complaints about people operating businesses out of their homes, with neighbors expressing concerns about noise, parking and traffic.
A six-month moratorium for new home business licenses was enacted in May 2025 to give city leaders time to consider the matter and extended to May 22 of this year and then again stretched into July.
The July 9 meeting could yield a vote to settle the matter once and for all, city officials said.
“We keep pushing this down the road,” Council President Billy Pritchard said near the end of Monday’s council meeting. “There will be comments about it no matter what we post and present.”
Council members wrestled with finding a date when all five would be available and present. They ultimately settled on the second Thursday of July.
City Manager Steve Boone said home occupancy likely will be the only thing on the agenda.
“I doubt anything else will be added,” he said. “It is a public hearing, and a vote could be held.”
During Monday’s meeting, the council also:
- Agreed to pay the Birmingham-Jefferson County Transit Authority $207,900 for services in fiscal 2026, which ends Sept. 30, and $218,295 for services in fiscal 2027, which begins Oct. 1 of this year.
- Authorized the police chief or his designee to destroy weapons, drugs and other evidence no longer needed and auction other items as permitted
- Approved a post-employment medical benefit plan for retirees from the city government
- Amended the city code regarding the sale of tobacco, vape and consumable hemp products, limiting new establishments to community business districts and limiting hours so that such businesses can operate only from 9 a.m. to 6 p.m.
- Agreed to apply for a federal grant that would help the city hire six additional firefighters
- Authorized a remodel of the Mountain Brook High School tennis bathroom. That project is estimated to cost $ 21,788.
- Appointed Anna Katherine Bowman to the Mountain Brook Parks and Recreation Board
- Approved an agreement that would allow the O’Neal Library to use Mountain Brook Baptist Church for mahjong play and Mountain Brook Presbyterian Church for the Great Stories Discussion Group. Each church is to be paid $100 for each library use. The church space was needed as renovations are underway at the library, which has shifted regular operation to the Sam S. Gaston Council Chamber.
- Established a two-week sidewalk café permit, beginning on Tuesday, June 9, for the location of Cala Coffee at 2409 Montevallo Road
The next regular meeting of the Mountain Brook City Council is 7 p.m. on June 22.
