Jefferson County, Hoover officials hold grand opening for new county satellite office

Jefferson County and Hoover officials today held the grand opening for the county’s new satellite revenue office off U.S. 31 in the Hoover Court Town Center.

The 10,460-square-foot office actually opened Monday, but officials held off on the ceremony until today because Monday was a busy day operationally.

The office, between Green Valley Drugs and Tidmore Flags, replaces the temporary and smaller satellite office that has been operating at Hoover Metropolitan Stadium since August 2014. It will handle vehicle tags, vehicle title applications and licenses for boating, hunting, fishing and motorcycle driving. People also will be able to obtain state and county business licenses and pay property taxes and county sales taxes.

People should also be able to renew driver’s licenses once the Alabama Law Enforcement Agency installs its equipment there, hopefully early next year, County Commissioner Jimmie Stephens said.

“What this means is that our citizens, the citizens that we share, will be able to come to the courthouse – this courthouse – and have a better opportunity in which to do business,” Stephens said. “The citizens of Jefferson County pay their fair share of taxes, and it’s time that we improved your quality of life.

“We can’t say that there won’t be any lines here, but what we can say is that the lines will be shorter and the people will be courteous and cooperative when they deal with you,” Stephens said.

Both Stephens and Hoover Mayor Gary Ivey said the satellite office is a perfect example of what regional cooperation is all about.

Ivey today presented the county with a check for $100,000 from the city of Hoover to help cover the cost of the satellite courthouse.

Jefferson County signed a 10-year lease with Hoover Court Investors LLC and Murer LLC and agreed to pay $9,588 per month for the first five years and $10,068 per months for years 6-10, said Jeff Smith, director of the county’s general services department.

The County Commission approved spending $850,000 to build, equip and furnish the new office, but it looks like the total cost will be closer to $700,000 or $720,000, Smith said.

Ivey said the new office will be a great convenience for Hoover residents and people from surrounding areas.

Tyler Wise, a Homewood resident, was at the new office today to renew his vehicle tag. He is grateful to not to have to go to downtown Birmingham to do that, he said.

“I just think it’s better because it’s more convenient. It’s faster,” he said. (Today), I just walked in and out. It didn’t take me long at all – seven minutes.”

Jefferson County formerly operated a satellite office on Green Springs Highway in Homewood that handled 28 percent of the county’s revenue transactions, and county officials say they expect the new Hoover office to rise to that level as well.

The temporary satellite office at the Hoover Met in September handled 8,059 transactions, representing 8.9 percent of the total revenue transactions handled by Jefferson County that month and 13 percent of the walk-in traffic, Revenue Director Travis Hulsey said.

The office in Homewood closed in 2011 due to budget constraints, along with satellite offices in Forestdale and Gardendale. Stephens said today that county commissioners are considering reopening the Gardendale office but have no immediate plans at this time.

In addition to the new Hoover office, Jefferson County has revenue offices at the courthouses in Birmingham and Bessemer and a satellite office in Center Point.

See more about the new office in Hoover.