Hoover council OKs deal for 2,350 new houses, 100-acre school site

The Hoover City Council on Monday night took several actions that will allow for the construction of more than 2,350 houses — and potentially almost 3,000 houses — than previously had been approved.

One of the actions included an agreement from USS Real Estate to donate 100 acres for a school site to the Hoover Board of Education and to postpone development of more than 1,900 of those houses for numerous years.

The 100-acre school property currently is in an unincorporated area just west of the Hoover city limits between Alabama 150 and Parkwood Road, west of Lake Cyrus. It should be large enough to accommodate a high school, but the donation hasn’t actually taken place yet, and what kind of school would go there hasn’t been determined.

In return, USS Real Estate was granted the authority to put 1,953 houses on 868 acres on the south side of Morgan Road frequently referred to as the Trigger Creek property.

USS Real Estate already had approval to put 1,944 houses on that land (under an annexation agreement from 1993), but the City Council on Monday night technically transferred those 1,944 housing units to the 833-acre Everlee property off Alabama 150, between Ross Bridge and Lake Cyrus.

The council also gave the developers of Everlee — Signature Homes, Marbury Properties and CCM Asset Management — the right to put another 400 housing units on the Everlee property.

However, 600 of the homes in Everlee would be restricted to people age 55 and older and people without children under the age of 18 living in the home. The net effect then would be 200 fewer homes that potentially would have produced children for Hoover City Schools than would have been allowed on the Trigger Creek property.

The original plan was to deannex the Trigger Creek property from Hoover after transferring the housing units to Everlee and allow USS Real Estate to develop Trigger Creek outside of Hoover, if it could get approval to do so.

But numerous Hoover officials said they were wary of letting the Trigger Creek property leave Hoover and preferred to keep it in the city limits.

Hoover Councilman Mike Shaw led negotiations with USS Real Estate to make that happen, securing the 100-acre land donation off Alabama 150 for a school and an agreement to delay residential development on the Trigger Creek property.

“What we’re getting is significant. I don’t think we can underestimate how significant this is,” Shaw said. “This is almost a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to get that kind of land.”

Also, USS Real Estate could have pursued development of the Trigger Creek property in unincorporated Shelby County or Helena, if the property were annexed into Helena. With this agreement, USS Real Estate is agreeing to hold off on any residential development on the Trigger Creek property for at least seven years, unless a new proposed parkway between Morgan Road and Interstate 459 is completed before then.

This gives the city of Hoover time to address traffic concerns first and solves the problem of lack of land for a school, Shaw said.

It doesn’t address how construction or operation of the school would be funded, but it’s a significant step in proactive planning, Shaw said. He views it as a 20-year plan for growth.

“We know the world is going to grow around us. We know that other cities are going to grow. We know there’s going to be development. The county’s already seen some of that,” Shaw said. “The real question we have to ask ourselves is: Are we going to be a part of that?”

The current city leaders have inherited a lot of great things due to decisions made in the past, as well as some challenges, Shaw said. “My hope is that … we can consider this as one of the good legacies to leave for the future,” he said.

The city for many years has been absorbing housing units approved in annexation agreements decades ago, but this agreement allows the city to start thinking about growth again, Shaw said.

“This will give us an opportunity to start dreaming big again, I think, and embrace all the opportunities that come with that,” he said.

The agreement between USS Real Estate and the city of Hoover calls for the 100-acre land donation for a school to be made immediately after a residential zoning plan is approved for the Trigger Creek property that is amenable to both the City Council and USS Real Estate.

Within five years of the land donation, the city of Hoover must build a two-lane public road between Alabama 150 and Parkwood Road that will provide access to the school site and adjacent property owned by USS Real Estate. USS Real Estate owns more than 200 acres west of the school site.

If the school site is not annexed into Hoover within five years of the land being donated, the land will revert back to the ownership of USS Real Estate. Also, if the Hoover Board of Education does not complete construction of a school within 15 years of the donation, the land goes back to USS Real Estate.

USS Real Estate also has agreed to pay a $3,000 building permit fee for each residential housing unit constructed on the Trigger Creek property instead of the required $1,500 building permit fee.

The agreement authorized by the City Council tonight also gave USS Real Estate the authority to put up to 612 additional houses on 272 acres that the company owns next to Trigger Creek if that land is annexed into the city in the future. However, the agreement approved tonight did not actually annex those 272 acres.

Six of the seven council members voted in favor of amending the Trigger Creek annexation agreement to incorporate the above-mentioned changes. Councilman Derrick Murphy abstained after asking questions about whether the council would entertain requiring that the $3,000 building permit fees go to the school system.

A resolution approved by a previous council in 2015 designated building permit fees for schools. The City Council in recent years increased its funding to the school system but included building permit fees in the overall allocation rather than building fees being given in addition to a general allocation.

Council President John Lyda said funding for schools would better be addressed during upcoming budget discussions.

Lyda on Monday night praised Shaw for leading negotiations regarding the Trigger Creek property and particularly for securing 100 acres for a school.

Lyda said previous city leaders 35 years ago had the foresight to negotiate an agreement for land for Hoover High School, and at that time, the land was in the middle of an industrial park. Some may have criticized that decision, but it turned out to be a great one, Lyda said.

Perhaps 35 years from now, people will look back and see this as a watershed moment for Hoover City Schools and development in Hoover, he said.

Hoover Mayor Frank Brocato said he agrees 100% with the decision by the council.

"I think it's great foresight on the part of the council to plan ahead like that," Brocato said. "They approached it as a city planner would approach it."

It was difficult for everybody to digest deannexing the Trigger Creek land that has been in the city for 28 years, and this revised annexation agreement addresses concerns about the school system and roadways, Brocato said.

The City Council also on Monday night amended the development plan for the Blackridge community to accommodate the potential future four-lane parkway the city is contemplating building from Morgan Road to Interstate 459 and Ross Bridge and to allow Signature Homes to make the southern portion of the housing community more dense than previously approved. Read more about the Blackridge zoning amendment here.