Council President William Bell thanks Mayor Kincaid for “the pleasant time we had yesterday morning at breakfast,” promising to arrange for other councilors to meet “one on one” with Kincaid. The Mayor acknowledges his enjoyment, telling Bell it was “worth the price of admission.”

The Boy Scouts thank the Council for its support of the scouts’ Camp Challenge program held in August. Purple T-shirts are distributed to the Council in appreciation. Council administrator Jarvis Patton asks why the shirts are purple, prompting Bell to tell Patton that “Tinky Winky is purple [the infamous "Teletubbies" character].” Bell references a study he had seen indicating that any kid going through the Boy Scout or Girl Scout program receives the “equivalent in training of going through a full four-year institution.”

The city’s plan to vacate a portion of Ridge Park Avenue to Sloss Development so that a parking deck can be constructed at the site of the newly renovated Rust Building prompts the Council’s unavoidable “argument of the day.” Sloss Development also requests waiving the $15,000 vacation fee it is asked to pay for constructing the parking deck on the vacated street. Councilor Johnson commends Sloss for the “outstanding job renovating what was truly a very prominent eyesore in the city of Birmingham.” Johnson moves that the fee be waived, but Bell objects, fearing the Council will “always be bombarded with waiving a fee” if a precedent is set dropping fees for private sector development.

Councilor Blake agrees with Johnson’s assessment of a job well done by Sloss. However, Blake notes that the Council has “on many occasions waived vacation fees when businesses were put in place that increase the number of jobs in Birmingham.”

Councilor Little tells Johnson that he should have gotten together with other councilors if he wanted the fee waived. “Just to bring it to this floor like that is just like a shotgun, and I can not approve that,” Little surmises. Johnson replies that he wasn’t aware of the request to drop the fee until right before the Council meeting. He says that the Council has “sent $10 million down to the Summit,” calling the Rust Building project “a good investment, equally along the lines of the investment we made out on the Summit.”

Councilor Loder says the proper time to request the waiver is beforehand, when putting together an economic package to attract investment. Loder, however, has a deeper gripe, questioning the waiving of fees for nonprofit organizations. “Just because an organization is nonprofit doesn’t mean it doesn’t make a profit. In today’s times, a lot of nonprofit organizations own for-profit organizations under the umbrella of nonprofit.”

Blake leaps back into the fray and urges the Council to be consistent in its application of waiving vacation fees. He finally suggests that perhaps the Council is refusing the waiver because the Rust project is in his district. The vacation is approved. The fee, however, is voted to remain in place when Loder votes with Bell’s Council majority. Blake leaves the chambers and doesn’t come back.

Bell ends the relatively short meeting on a light note, holding a pair of women’s sunglasses found in the ladies’ room at City Hall. Commenting on the expensive quality of the glasses, Bell speculates that “I might look cute in them” should they remain unclaimed. Councilors laugh, unable to hide their joy at finishing a Birmingham City Council meeting in only two hours.