By NEAL WAGNER / Managing Editor

ALABASTER – Drivers who regularly traverse Alabaster Boulevard near the Propst Promenade shopping center soon may have a smoother ride, as the city is preparing to make repairs to the high-traffic street.

During a July 7 work session, City Council members voiced support for a project to repair sections of the road, which is owned by the city and connects the shopping center with the Weatherly and Ballantrae neighborhoods.

A recent engineering study revealed the road was in overall “poor” condition, Alabaster City Engineer Brett Tucker told council members. Over the past several years, poor road base and fill materials under the roadway have caused parts of Alabaster Boulevard to develop humps and “places where the pavement is graveling out,” Tucker said.

The project’s final cost will be determined by bid amounts, but Tucker said it likely will cost more than $100,000 to repair the most damaged portions of the road.

“That’s not going to fix all that’s wrong out there. It will fix the worst parts,” Tucker said.

If the project is approved during a future council meeting, the project will begin in about two months, Tucker said. During construction, portions of the road will be closed to traffic over an about two-week period, Tucker said.

Alabaster City Manager George Henry said the city has money available to fund the project, and Ward 1 Councilwoman Sophie Martin said she receives calls regularly about the road.

“Safety to me is an issue. Those first couple of dips are terrible,” Martin said. “I think it’s definitely something that’s needed to be done for a long time.”