BY SARAH STEPHENS
ELMORE/AUTAUGA NEWS
TOP PHOTO: The Site Plan for TownePlace Suites by Marriott was approved Tuesday night by the Millbrook City Council. Construction could begin in about a month and expected to take one year to complete. It will be located next to SpringHill Suites.
The Millbrook City Council had a big meeting Tuesday, during which they voted to move forward on accepting a bid for Phase 1 construction on 17 Springs, and also accepted a site plan for a new hotel, TownePlace Suites by Marriott, in the city. Big budget items and a bright future for development was the focus of the evening’s meeting.
The Fields at 17 Springs:
The Council accepted a bid and authorized Mayor Al Kelley to enter into contract for construction of the 17 Springs Multi-Sport Complex Phase 1. The contract was awarded to WAR Construction of Tuscaloosa for a cost of $10,637, 496. This will be split equally between the city and the Elmore County Commission. $1 million funding is also coming from the Elmore County Board of Education.
The Council also approved a bid from Sourcewell for installation of lights and field turf. The Mayor is authorized to purchase materials for the lighting project and professional services for $1,418,875.
For the Sports Synthetic Turf project, the city approved $1,423,178.
For Field Turf Cool Play system, they approved $216,240. For project management services, the council approved $42,120.
Work has been ongoing on site off of Hwy. 14 on property which is attached to the Grandview YMCA and located off of Dismukes Road. However, because of trees, the view from Hwy. 14 has been obscured. More obvious work is the cleanup of the former Stephens Auto Yard where wrecked/disabled vehicles have now been removed as well as metal buildings.
The City’s Project Manager, Stuart Peters, spoke the council about the next steps in beginning construction.
“This will be the ball fields, practice field, four multi-purpose fields, tennis and pickle ball, entrances and vertical structures,” Peters said. “Since May the city and county have been working on publicly bidding this project.”
Sept. 1 the city received bids including three general contractors. “Of these three the numbers were the tightest I have ever seen on projects. Two actually had identical numbers. So then you have to look at qualifications,” Peters said.
The bids came in higher than originally expected, but Peters explained that is just a sign of the times.
“In the times we are now with materials and labor…these are the best numbers we could get to achieve the project,” he continued. “The goal is to have Phase 1 up and running one year from now in 2022.”
The Council authorized the purchase of project materials and services for Phase 1. This includes high grade, quality lighting and turf fields.
“If the general contractor buys those items there is a mark up on that. The City can buy those items through Sourcewell and pick up some savings. That is another component of trying to achieve phase 1 construction. Those are big numbers for lighting. But this is not what you would normally see in a high school setting. These are high end LED that have the ability to change colors, instant on, electronic controls. There are foot candles. It is top notch and it is not something that we needed to try and value engineer for the sake of the budget.”
Peters also discussed the turf fields installation.
“This is a premium turf field. It will give you longevity, stand up the wear and tera. We feel like this is a facility that you are going to be using all year long. You have an extra grass field that can be converted into soccer or football and other things. We added in pickle ball courts because there is a high demand for that. And Tennis courts have always been there. We want to get phase 1 complete in one year. I feel like a year from now, despite these numbers, the city, county and all partners will be proud of the facilities.”
A Cross Country area will also be implemented around a pond on the site.
Original discussions on the Fields of 17 Springs projected three phases. However, Peters explained it would be a smart move to condense that down to two phases.
That would include the Field House, Multi-purpose stadium, ballfields, amphitheater and design elements.
“It is going to take 16 months we are told. We are going to try and compress that into about a year. So the idea is when Phase 1 comes online we are bidding the Phase 2 project.”
The Council authorized the Mayor to execute contracts for Phase 2, particularly the design elements.
When it comes to construction of phase 2, War Construction could be included in that project depending on the results of Phase 1.
“From an economic development perspective, I want to say that I am really happy these items are appearing on the agenda tonight,” Director of Economic Development Ann Harper said. “I know it is a scary prospect. I know that it is expensive. But it is critical to future development on the Hwy. 14 corridor. I am getting phone calls on a regular basis from developers and people who are interested in investing in Millbrook.”
Harper said it is hard to see everything going on at the moment, as there is a lot of dirt moving behind tree lines. “But when we start going vertical, everyone will see that. The sooner we can start this project the better. The plans are going to come together for things like restaurants, hotels and other stores to not only develop around the park, but will impact everything going west closer to the interstate.”
Council President Michael Gay told his fellow council members he was contacted by District 4 Elmore County Commissioner Bart Mercer about the project.
“He reported that the Elmore County Commission has passed their component of their equal partnership costs. The Elmore County Board of Education has committed their funds as well,” Gay said.
New Hotel Information – TownePlace Suites by Marriott
The Millbrook City Council also approved a site plan for a new hotel. TownePlace Suites by Marriott will be located at 34 Hospitality Lane. It will contain four stories, 104 rooms and 60,057 square feet of hotel, meeting areas, indoor/outdoor social areas, outdoor pool, parking/landscaping.
The hotel will be owned by Rinkesh Patel – RAM Millbrook Hospitality Two, LLC.
The architect firm is Bradley & Schmidt Architecture.
“This will be at exit 179,” Peters said. “Back in 2018 the city invested in a co-op district and built an infrastructure of sewer and water and Hospitality Lane was built. That is where SpringHill Suites was built. There is a lot as you are going towards SpringHill Suites on the right. It is set up perfectly and was designed for a future hotel. This (new hotel) will have very similar characteristics of SpringHill Suites.”
Construction on the new hotel could begin in about a month, and will take about a year to complete.
“This is a project that some of the engineering started right when Covid started. We were communicating about this project and lumber prices skyrocketed. That is a critical component of a hotel project,” Peters said. “That component has calmed down but of course electrical, plumbing and all those others have gone up. Renkish and his design team has moved forward. I am sure it is a lot more expensive than he thought it would have been a year and a half ago, but it is something that he wants to bring to Millbrook.”
Mayor Kelley commented on the overall night’s agenda saying, “It’s a big night. The 17 Springs project has been in the works for years. A lot of thought and effort has gone into this. I don’t think there has ever been a worse time to bid stuff than right now. But it may get worse. We are going to have a beautiful facility. I can’t say enough about the work that has gone into this between the YMCA, ECEDA, the county, us and the Board of Education.”
“I think this is a great project. There is a lot of money on the table. This money is split between us and the county. The Board of Education has committed $1 million as well. We have done everything we can do to try to keep the budget in line as best we can,” Kelley said.
As for the hotel, Kelley said, “It is always a pleasure to work with RAM Hospitality. Renkish Patel has become a good friend of mine over the years that we have had business dealings with him. I found him to be a fair and honest person. We look forward to getting TownPlace Suites and generating more revenue for the city of Millbrook.”
Council President Michael Gay said, “I want to give thanks to our five partners in the 17 Springs project. This partnership and what we are doing together is getting notice across the state. I was talking with the League of Municipalities today and 17 Springs came up. They were asking how we were able to get the partnerships together. This is a great night. We have great partners. A lot of hours behind the scenes. There is a lot of work going on by a lot of people. It is a great night for the city and the county.”
