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The Mountain Brook City Council traveled the road of least resistance Tuesday, choosing to apply for a sidewalk installation grant for Old Leeds Lane instead of Corinth Drive.
The deadline for submitting the grant application is Friday. An application for a sidewalk on Corinth Drive was presented at a recent council meeting, and after hearing from children who live on Old Leeds Lane, the council asked that an application be prepared for Old Leeds Lane as well so it could choose between the two streets.
Council members noted there was some resident opposition to sidewalks going onto Corinth Drive.
“That was a problem,” Council President Billy Pritchard said. “If you don't have cooperation with everybody on the street, you kind of run into a roadblock on sidewalk projects.
“We're not going to do what we legally could do, and that is take somebody's property (and) force them to do it,” he continued. “We're not gonna do that, for a sidewalk.”
City Manager Steve Boone said the proposed sidewalk on Old Leeds Lane would cover 2,100 feet. The city is trying to get a federal Transportation Alternatives Program grant to pay for it. If the city gets the grant, the federal government would cover 80% of the cost of the sidewalk, and the city would pick up the other 20%.
In other action Tuesday, the City Council:
- Approved the installation of a crosswalk on Montevallo Road at Cherry Street
- Agreed to remove wheel stops from at least some parking places near the Grand Bohemian hotel to address issues with line of sight
- Authorized the sale or disposal of certain surplus property
- Authorized an agreement with Employee Assistance Services
- Discussed prohibiting parking on the “house side” and in the cul-de-sac of Park Brook Road. As those parking restrictions would require an ordinance, a public hearing on the matter will be advertised prior to an upcoming council meeting.
The next regular meeting of the City Council is at 7 p.m. on Monday, June 8.
