Homewood Recovers $500k From Theft
The City of Homewood recovered a portion of the funds stolen from the city by the former finance director. This initial $500,000 was the result of an insurance payout from the city’s carrier Traveler’s Insurance. The city, with assistance from the city attorney and other investigative agencies, anticipates recovering additional funds.
“As we work through this process," says Mayor Patrick McClusky, "we are hopeful that the city will eventually recover the majority, if not the totality, of the embezzled funds."
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Council Meeting July 28, 2025 Council covered routine business including approval of several resolutions and ordinances related to budget amendments, surplus property, stormwater diversion, municipal court staffing, and equipment purchases. Council unanimously approved Sanford University’s stadium housing project which is housing right next to their football stadium. Agenda: https://bit.ly/4f9rDBQ Meeting schedules & archives: https://bit.ly/3bvufcT
Finance - July 21, 2025 The Finance Committee approved a long list of budget-related items including surplus library equipment, a new municipal court prosecutor, and the final change order for the Kenilworth stormwater project, which finished under 10% of the original bid. Other approvals included money for a new pothole patching equipment and truck, various budget transfers for fire and police departments, setting an August 19 bid date for Green Springs Phase 2, and approving money for a city ad in the Chamber’s Centennial Map Guide. Agenda: https://bit.ly/4l1bbFm
Mayor Wyatt Responds to Legal Filing Over Former Police Headquarters “The City of Homewood has filed a Motion to Dissolve the Temporary Restraining Order and a Motion to Dismiss in response to a recent Petition that was filed against the City of Homewood involving the former Police Headquarters property. In these filings, the City outlines why it believes it has acted appropriately throughout the process surrounding the potential sale of the site. The City now awaits the Court’s ruling." Alex Wyatt Mayor of Homewood
Council Meeting July 14, 2025 Summary: The meeting opened with Dr. Wayne Harris calling for the release of bodycam footage in the Jabari Peoples shooting and threatening a coordinated boycott on business owners in The Homewood community if demands for transparency and reform are not met. During the meeting, council approved a traffic calming ordinance for Oxmoor Road to slow traffic down, several IT and maintenance contracts, and approved the list of election workers. Mayor Wyatt reiterated legal limits on releasing the bodycam footage and urged ALEA to grant the family's request. Read his full statement here: https://bit.ly/3TZ5HQp Agenda: https://bit.ly/4ngOSOa Meeting schedules & archives: https://bit.ly/3bvufcT
Mayor Wyatt Renews Call for ALEA to Share Body Camera Footage with Family of Jabari Peoples Mayor Alex Wyatt released the following statement regarding the June 23 shooting involving Jabari Peoples: “As the Mayor of Homewood, I continue to urge the Alabama Law Enforcement Agency to allow the family of Jabari Peoples to view the body camera footage from the June 23 shooting incident. Their request is completely understandable. Legally, we don’t have the authority to release the footage because ALEA has taken over the investigation and, under the law, it controls access to evidence because it is the custodian of the footage. We have made that distinction clear in our legal filings in Jefferson County Circuit Court. We know this is an incredibly difficult time for everyone involved and want objective results made available to the family and the public as quickly as possible."
Board of Zoning Adjustments July 10, 2025 Two zoning variance requests on Devon Drive were denied, one for a partially permeable front parking pad and landscaping changes at 208 Devon, and another for an eight-foot fence setback variance at 401 Devon. Both petitioners cited safety and space concerns. Agenda: https://bit.ly/3GLQfDU Upcoming meeting schedules: https://bit.ly/3bvufcT Archived meetings: http://bit.ly/2UiSIaA For all the details about this meeting watch the video above.
Water service will be temporarily shut off in parts of Homewood on Thursday night, July 10, as Birmingham Water Works crews replace two 8-inch valves. The outage is scheduled from 11:00pm Thursday to 6:00am Friday, affecting approximately 80 connections. During this time, customers may experience low water pressure or complete loss of service. Work will begin at Tamworth Lane and Devon Drive, with additional impacts expected on Rumson Road, Windsor Drive, and a portion of Highway 280. Once service is restored, water may appear brown or cloudy. BWW recommends running cold water for 5 minutes to help clear the lines.
Planning Commission July 8, 2025 The Planning Commission approved an amended development plan for a covered porch at 134 South Pointe Drive, with has no increase in the impervious area. They also approved a re-survey and rezoning request at 1833 29th Avenue South to support the development of a high-end restaurant and public park at the old Homewood Police Department site. Both items received a six-zero vote in favor. Agenda: https://bit.ly/3GDmp4t Upcoming meeting schedules: https://bit.ly/3bvufcT Archived meetings: http://bit.ly/2UiSIaA For all the details about this meeting watch the video above.
In response to the tragic events of June 23, 2025
Finance - June 30, 2025 The Finance Committee accepted the annual audit showing a $4.9 million fund balance increase, and they approved multiple stormwater infrastructure contracts totaling over $51,000. This includes updating a drainage ditch behind Shades Cahaba Elementary that has long been an issue. Committee agreed to sign agreements for IT security, device management, and copier services. They also discussed a large retroactive insurance premium adjustment of $71,000, and provided an update on the parking deck lease with Dawson Memorial Baptist that is in the final stages of being completed.