HOMEWOOD, Ala. (WIAT) — The City of Homewood will hold its first informational meeting Tuesday night regarding proposed structural changes to city government.
Currently, Homewood has 11 part-time city council members representing five wards. The proposal would change that to four council members representing four wards.
It also would create a full-time mayor position, something Council Member Jennifer Andres said voters wanted in the last city election.
“What was clear in the last election was that the people we listened to wanted a full-time executive position,” Andres said.
The mayor would be in charge of the day-to-day running of the city, with the various city departments reporting to him.
“That full-time mayor will report to and be accountable to the council,” Andres added.
Andres says the city of Vestavia Hills is adopting a similar model for government. CBS 42 spoke with Dave Horn, a Vestavia resident and business owner in Homewood. Horn fully supports Homewood adopting the proposal and says it's a good thing Vestavia has a mayor.
“I think with the current structure, sometimes we end up with too many cooks in the kitchen. This is really about efficiency and I think this is a more efficient way to run a city like this,” Horn said.
CBS 42 spoke with several residents who are not happy with the proposal, but who questioned the need for a full-time mayor.
For the proposal to move forward, 10 percent of voters who voted in the last city election would need to sign a petition in favor of it, and the city hopes to have enough signatures to put the proposal on the ballot by August.
The first information session on the proposal will be held at Homewood City Hall on Tuesday at 5 p.m.
