Homewood staff recommends awarding Central Avenue TAP contract, proposes $350,000 budget amendment

City staff told the Homewood City Council at its Nov. 24 pre‑council meeting that it is recommending the award of the Central Avenue Transportation Alternatives Program (TAP) multimodal project construction contract to Avery Landscaping and asking the council to authorize a contract with Sain and Associates for construction engineering and inspection.

Staff said the project was designed by Sain and Associates and awarded through a TAP grant administered by ALDOT; ALDOT funds 80% of eligible costs and the city would pay upfront and submit for reimbursement. The presenter told council there was strong local bidding interest and that LDOT/ALDOT approved the bids and the proposed inspection contractor. Staff also said there were a few bidder questions about the lighting package that were resolved to staff satisfaction.

Separately, staff proposed a budget amendment of $350,000 to shift funds from another project so the Central Avenue work can be completed in the current fiscal year rather than spread across two years. Staff explained the city budgets expenditures and then recognizes the 80% reimbursement in revenues; no final appropriation or vote appears in the recorded pre‑council discussion.

The discussion in the transcript focused on procurement and budget mechanics; the presenter identified the engineer’s estimate on the bid tab and recommended the low bidder, but the transcript presents the bid amounts in a way that is unclear. The city will need to record the formal motion and vote in a subsequent council record for the award and budget amendment to take effect.

Next steps: staff indicated the items are before the council and will be advanced to the formal council agenda for action; the transcript does not record any final motion, vote, or effective date for these items.