By NEAL WAGNER / City Editor

A new Alabaster City Hall building next to the Alabaster Senior Center likely will be complete by summer 2013 after the Alabaster City Council awarded a bid for the project during its July 2 meeting.

During the meeting, the council awarded an about $3.5 million bid to the Blalock Construction company to build the two-story, 19,853-square-foot building, which will house the city’s administrative offices, city court and other municipal departments.

The new City Hall will consolidate offices currently spread across three buildings. The new building will include a 170-seat courtroom, a city office suite and a conference room for city boards. The building’s second floor will be used for storage, and could accommodate future growth, Alabaster City Administrator George Henry previously said.

Construction on the building likely will begin in August, and will take about 10-11 months to complete, city officials said.

Alabaster Mayor David Frings said the Turner-Batson architectural firm is “to be thanked” for working to design the new building, and for working with city officials to model the new City Hall according to the city’s needs.

“With the help of these professionals, stakeholders and residents in Alabaster will have a facility that will serve the needs of the community for years to come,” Frings said.

Once the new City Hall is constructed, the Alabaster Police Department likely will expand into the second floor of the current City Hall on U.S. 31.

In other business, the council:

-Agreed to partner with the Alabama Department of Transportation and Shelby County to install a traffic signal at the intersection of Shelby County 80 and Alabama 119.

“This is a long overdue upgrade to this intersection that will enhance safety for travelers,” Frings said.

-Announced the city will hold a ribbon-cutting ceremony for the new addition to the Albert L. Scott Public Library at 10 a.m. on Wednesday, July 18.