Private Development Projects

The Bray at Liberty Park

https://www.libertypark.com/the-bray

Share a comment or ask a question regarding this development in the Vestavia Hills Listens portal at https://www.opentownhall.com/11759.
Project History
  • The Liberty Park Joint Venture (LPJV) conceived their vision of a development plan for the remaining undeveloped 700 acres within the Liberty Park PUD in 2020. They branded the future development area as The Bray.
  • LPJV publicly introduced the proposed plan in the fall of 2020 and made presentations to the City of Vestavia Hills and residents of Liberty Park late in 2020 and early in 2021.
  • The proposed Bray plan requires multiple approvals from the City of Vestavia Hills prior to commencing development efforts.
  • Over the course of the 2020-2021 community meetings, residents shared feedback and concerns with City Council members. In an effort to address these concerns and answer legal questions posed by individual City Council members, the City hired special outside legal counsel. Because of the potential impacts to the Vestavia Hills City Schools (VHCS), the school system also hired special counsel. Attorneys representing the various parties: Whit Colvin, representing City of Vestavia Hills; Gail Mills, representing LPJV; Mark Boardman, representing VHCS.
  • Over the past year, special counsel for the City has worked with LPJV representatives to draft a revised agreement which is sensitive to community concerns. This agreement requires approval of LPJV and the Vestavia Hills City Council.
Approvals Requested by Liberty Park Joint Venture
  • Approval of a second amendment to the Liberty Park Planned Unit Development (PUD) to facilitate implementation of the development vision and to align Liberty Park with the entirety of Vestavia Hills in regard to home occupations. Scheduled to be heard by the Planning and Zoning Commission on September 8, 2022 at 6pm at City Hall. Notification has been sent pursuant to Alabama Law.
  • Agreement to accept public dedication of Liberty Park roadway infrastructure, not including the “Old Overton area” that is behind secured gates. Dedication also would not include some alley ways and streets.
Proposed Changes to Liberty Park PUD – What Does This Mean?

An “Official Notification of Public Hearing” for a proposed Second Amendment to the Liberty Park Planned Unit Development (PUD) has been mailed to all Liberty Park property owners, along with property owners located within 500’ outside of Liberty Park, as of August 12, 2022. The primary reasons for this Amendment would be to bring Liberty Park under current requirements of the PUD zoning classification in Ordinance 3099, the Vestavia Hills Zoning Code to: (1) allow residents of Liberty Park to obtain home occupation licenses without a conditional use approval; and (2) allow single family detached residential development in planned business (PB) zoning classification.

On July 7, 2003, the City Council approved and adopted Ordinance 2001 approving the First Amendment to the Liberty Park PUD that zoned an additional 206 acres annexed into the City and Liberty Park (now the area called Provence) into the Liberty Park PUD. The original PUD and this Amendment envisioned a regional mall along with an overpass from I-459 to improve access for this proposed mall. When the overpass was not approved, the regional mall development plan was tabled. In lieu of this now outdated concept, the developers reimagined the improvement of that acreage into a smaller, pedestrian-friendly “downtown” area featuring a grand lawn for community activities, a new school site and residential neighborhoods. While this does not directly impact existing Liberty Park homes, it will reduce the amount of commercial development in favor of additional residential development.

Currently, Liberty Park residents are required to apply for and receive a conditional use prior to obtaining a city license to obtain a business license for a home occupation (a home office with no outdoor signage, no customers, no inventory). This process requires a 500’ notification and two public hearings. Liberty Park is the only area of Vestavia Hills required to obtain a conditional use. Therefore, the newly adopted Ordinance 3099, Vestavia Hills Zoning Code, changes the home occupation requirements to be uniform city-wide. However, to come under the new Code requires this Second Amendment to the Liberty Park PUD.

To allow for a more residential/less commercial development, along with establishing uniform home occupation rules for Liberty Park residents, the Second Amendment to the Liberty Park PUD was needed to be submitted by the LPJV developers for approval and is scheduled to be presented to the Vestavia Hills Planning and Zoning Commission at its regular meeting on September 8, 2022 beginning at 6pm. If recommendation is made by the Commission, the request would be presented to the City Council for consideration; tentatively scheduled for one of the two regular meetings in October 2022. This meeting will be available both in person and virtually via Zoom (https://us02web.zoom.us/j/5539517181 or one-touch dialing 312.626.6799,,5539517181#).

Zoning Maps & Information

Current Zoning – Click to view a PDF of the CURRENT zoning map.

Proposed Zoning – Click to view a PDF of the PROPOSED land use map.

Proposed Zoning – Click to view a PDF of the UNDEVELOPED PROPERTY map.

NOTE: The Planned Neighborhood Commercial (PNC) areas on both maps have been in place since the first amendment to the PUD was approved in 2003. While the City can not speak for Liberty Park Joint Venture, the developer’s original vision for these PNC areas was for low-impact services specifically geared toward serving the Liberty Park community, i.e. daycare facility or hair salon. These properties are not in high-visibility locations and, at this time, do not support most commercial applications. For example, an existing PNC, located at the corner of Liberty Parkway and Lake Colony Lane, has been developed as sport courts for neighborhood use.

Documents & Presentations
Public Meeting/Presentation Schedule

To facilitate presentation of the new plan and allow for full public engagement on the decision, the City proposes the following public meeting schedule, with all meetings available in-person and virtually via Zoom:

  • January 10, 2022: City Council Work Session, 5pm – City Council hears City Manager’s report on forthcoming decisions and proposed schedule
  • January 24, 2022: City Council Work Session, 5pm – Developer presents proposed Development Agreement (draft), Annexation Agreement Amendment (draft); City presents proposed Public-Private Partnership Incentive Agreement; click HERE to view a recording of the Council Work Session
  • January 25, 2022: City uploads all documents and proposed plans on City website and provides link to Vestavia Hills Listens topic for public to submit questions and comments
  • January 31, 2022, 6pm & February 10, 2022, noon: City conducts town hall meetings to receive public input on project; meetings available in person or via Zoom: https://us02web.zoom.us/j/5539517181 or one-touch dialing 312.626.6799,,5539517181#
  • February 14, 2022: City Council Meeting, 6pm – First reading of the proposed Development Agreement, Annexation Agreement and Amendment 772 Public-Private Partnership Agreement
  • February 28, 2022: City Council Meeting, 6pm – City Council vote on acceptance of Development Agreement and Amended Annexation Agreement postponed to March 14 regular meeting.
  • March 14, 2022: City Council Meeting, 6pm – City Council unanimously voted to accept the Development Agreement and Amended Annexation Agreement.
  • June 27, 2022: City Council adopted new Vestavia Hills Zoning Code, Ordinance 3099.
  • September 8, 2022: Planning and Zoning Commission meeting for first review of second amendment to the Liberty Park Planned Unit Development (PUD) for a zoning recommendation. This is the first step in the amendment process so that the Commission may make a recommendation to be presented to the City Council at a later date. Meeting available in person or via Zoom: https://us02web.zoom.us/j/5539517181 or one-touch dialing 312.626.6799,,5539517181#
Developer/Special Counsel presentation – January 24, 2022 Council Work Session: