Hoover mayor wants to revive plans for new I-459 interchange

Hoover Mayor Frank Brocato is seeking to revive a plan for a new Interstate 459 interchange near South Shades Crest Road.

The mayor is asking the Hoover City Council to spend $2 million to buy 31.3 acres of land from USS Real Estate along South Shades Crest Road as part of the project.

That land would provide space for a new road that would connect Brock’s Gap Parkway with I-459. On the north side of I-459, the same road would connect with Ross Bridge Parkway.

The idea for the new interstate interchange has been discussed for more than 10 years. During former Mayor Tony Petelos’ administration, a previous city council in April 2009 passed a resolution in support of the interchange, and then in May 2010 the Federal Highway Administration approved a justification study submitted by the city.

But the mayor who followed Petelos, Gary Ivey, did not see the project as a priority and withdrew his support of the city providing matching funds for federal highway dollars, Hoover’s retiring Executive Director Allen Pate said.

New City Administrator Allan Rice said the new interchange is greatly needed to improve traffic flow in that part of Hoover and would provide a lot of relief for traffic on Alabama 150. City officials estimate the new interchange would shift 6,000 vehicles a day off Alabama 150, Rice said.

It also would provide a second route for traffic coming to and leaving the Hoover Metropolitan Complex, which includes Hoover Metropolitan Stadium and a new 155,000-square-foot indoor event center and adjoining multi-field sports complex under construction.

More land would need to be purchased on the north side of I-459 to build the extension to Ross Bridge Parkway, Rice said.

Also, the city will need to get the project back on the agenda of the Birmingham Metropolitan Planning Organization, which is the body that decides how federal highway dollars are spent in the metro area, Rice said.

“MPO approval is the key to being able to proceed,” he said.

Hoover Council President Gene Smith said he is glad to see the project resurfacing. He only hopes he can see it completed in his lifetime, he said.

Rice said it’s certainly not a short-term project, but if the city purchases this land for the project, it will show the city is serious about proceeding again and willing to help pay at least some of the matching money required by the federal government.

Many federally funded road projects require local governments to put up 20 percent of the cost for the projects.

Smith said he would hope Jefferson County would be willing to help pay for the interchange. Shelby County officials don’t seem interested in doing so, he said.

When previous studies were done, the estimated cost for the interchange was $40 million to $50 million, Rice said. It certainly would cost more now, he said.

“It’s a matter of those dollars versus today’s dollars,” Rice said.

The good news is that the land needed for the interchange remains undeveloped, Rice said.

USS Real Estate in the spring of 2015 tried to get 26 acres of this 31.3-acre parcel rezoned from industrial use to commercial use to make way for a Walmart Neighborhood Market and gasoline station, but neighbors staunchly objected. The City Council in April 2015 unanimously rejected USS Real Estate’s request.

The company came back to the Planning and Zoning Commission in October, seeking to amend the Trace Crossings development plan so that property and other property in Trace Crossings zoned for restricted industrial use would be rezoned so it could only be used for commercial or office space. Residents again fought the rezoning and got it tabled.

Only a portion of the 31.3 acres would be needed for the access road to the interstate, and city officials have not said what they would do with the remaining land if they were to buy it.

Ira Levine, a commercial real estate broker and developer who is active with the Hoover Area Chamber of Commerce, said the $2 million purchase price seems very reasonable to him for that property.

“I’m sure they did their homework,” he said. “One thing I feel certain about is the city did not overpay. That’s very reasonable by any stretch.”

It amounts to about $64,000 per acre, which is cheap for commercial property, he said.

“It’s the old law of supply and demand,” Levine said. “It’s worth what the city is willing to pay because they’ve got to have it in order to do the project.”

People in neighborhoods along South Shades Crest Road should be extremely pleased with the idea of getting an interstate interchange, Levine said.

The mayor originally was going to ask the City Council to authorize him to proceed with the $2 million land purchase at this coming Monday's council meeting, but Rice said the mayor now wants to postpone the vote to allow more time for public input.