Tuscaloosa City Council approves demolition, rezoning and a string of contracts; business-license revocation withdrawn

Tuscaloosa City Council members on April 21 voted to withdraw a proposed business-license revocation, order demolition of a condemned house at 512 Hargrove Road East, approve a rezoning request for a duplex and adopt a bundle of routine contracts, disbursements and budget amendments.

The council voted to withdraw the item to revoke the business license for Skinner Transportation after a motion and second; no public testimony was offered on the withdrawal. The council then considered a public hearing on the condemnation and demolition of 512 Hargrove Road East. City staff told the council the property was condemned on Jan. 31, 2025, for 48 housing-code violations; no owner appeared. Council members voted to order demolition, and staff noted demolition costs would be charged back to the owner if the city performs the work.

The council approved rezoning petition Zoning Amendment No. 3 to reclassify about 0.5 acres at 6730 First Street from SFR-2 to SFR-4 to allow a duplex. City planning staff said the property was demolished and the proposed duplex would be roughly 1,600 square feet; the planning commission recommended unanimous approval. Lavell Taylor spoke at the meeting as a representative for developer Tony L. Taylor.

Council members also approved an ABC alcohol application for Curry Kitchen LLC, d/b/a The Curry Kitchen, to hold a restaurant and retail liquor license for 3799 McFarland Boulevard East. Police provided a report with no objections. The applicant — identified at the hearing as the owner’s spouse — told the council this is the owners’ first restaurant business.

Beyond those items, the council adopted a series of resolutions and contract authorizations brought forward by staff. The motions approved purchases, minor public-works contracts, professional services agreements, reimbursement agreements and budget amendments. Items approved included, among others:

- Authorization to purchase equipment, supplies or services from Advanced Mower Incorporated. - Execution of a reimbursable agreement with ODOT (Alabama Department of Transportation). - A professional services agreement with the University of Alabama. - District improvement-fund disbursements for Districts 2, 6 and 7. - Minor public-works contracts with Chip Griffith Construction Inc., Tesco Inc., Alabama Prowash, Knight Sign Industries Inc. and EDCO LLC for various city projects. - A professional-services agreement with TTL Inc. and a contract amendment with The Cassidy Company Inc. - Budget amendments, including Amendment No. 9 to the 2022 B Warrant Series budget and an amendment to the FY25 Water and Sewer Reserve for Future Improvements Fund.

Council members also introduced zoning amendments No. 6 and No. 7 for later public hearings and set May 13 as the hearing date for both items. The council approved payment of the city’s bills during the meeting.

Votes on routine items were recorded by voice; the meeting transcript records unanimous "yes" votes for those resolutions that were adopted. For items that required or recorded public hearings, staff confirmed notice and owner contact where applicable.

The council closed the meeting after adopting the items and hearing citizen presentations earlier in the evening.

Ending: The meeting record shows the council handled the business-heavy agenda with multiple unanimous approvals and a few items requiring public hearings; the city clerk will publish the formal minutes and adopted instruments with statutory citations and contract numbers when those documents are finalized.