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Commission annuls corrected Cape Seal special-assessment roll for 450 Oak and awards 2026 contract, sets new roll confirmation date
Summary
Commissioners discovered a miscalculation in the Cape Seal special-assessment roll for 10 condominium units at 450 Oak, annulled the role for reissuance and set a new confirmation hearing for March 23; separately the commission awarded the 2026 Cape Seal contract to Highway Maintenance contingent on insurance/bonding and assessment confirmation.
A clerical error in the Cape Seal special-assessment role prompted the Birmingham City Commission on March 9 to annul the roll for a limited group of parcels and set a new confirmation hearing.
Deputy Treasurer Ryan Katz notified the commission that 10 condominium parcels at 450 Oak Avenue were miscalculated: the third-party calculation used square footage rather than dividing costs equally by units. Although the grand total for the project did not change, several individual unit assessments changed. The city attorney advised that confirmation of a special-assessment role must match the amounts noticed to property owners; the commission therefore directed staff to prepare and reissue a corrected role and set a confirmation hearing for March 23, 2026.
Separately, engineering recommended and the commission approved a contract award for the 2026 Cape Seal program to Highway Maintenance and Construction Company for $417,727.25, with a 10% contingency (total $459,499.98), subject to satisfaction of insurance and bond requirements. Staff and legal counsel later clarified that, under the city ordinance, no construction contract should be executed where a special assessment confirmation is required until the role is confirmed; the commission recorded that caveat and instructed staff not to sign project contracts before assessment confirmation where the ordinance requires it.
What happened next: the commission nullified the SAD roll for re-preparation and set the confirmation hearing for 03/23/2026. The Cape Seal contract award was approved by roll call, but staff were asked to withhold executing the contract until assessment-confirmation procedural steps are complete where applicable.
Why it matters: residents affected by special assessments must receive accurate notice of individual amounts; the commission prioritized legal notice requirements over immediate execution to avoid procedural challenges.
Sources: deputy treasurer presentation of corrected calculations; city attorney guidance; engineering contract recommendation and roll-call vote.
