The Meadow Brook Homeowners Association was not in existence in 1985. However, when Daniel Realty began talking about cutting Cumberland Trace up the hill to the Apartments the residents formed the association as a means to represent ourselves as a unified body against Daniel Realty and their original design for the “planned community” of Meadow Brook. We were able to stop them from turning that cul-de-sac into a through street. After that we also worked with Daniel to get a buffer zone for the residents on Cumberland Trace and the Office Park.
Then came the Aronov rezoning of the property on the corner of Meadow Drive and Valleydale Road (location of the church and horse stables) for 1,800 apartments to be built. The Homeowner’s Association attended Shelby County Planning Commission meetings and wrote letters asking the Shelby County Planning Commission to modify or repeal their previous decision.
The stop signs on Meadow Brook Road to slow down traffic were put in. Talk of a Swim and Tennis Club on Meadow Brook Road on the lots that would not perk — tempers flared on this topic. Adjoining residents to this property opposed the idea of a Swim and Tennis Club as it was not in the original design plan for our community.
In 1987 90% of the homeowners in Meadow Brook petitioned for annexation into Hoover. There were many issues and in the end Meadow Brook residents were denied their petition for annexation.
Membership dues for the association initially came about because as the developers in Meadow Brook finished their work they ceased maintaining the attractive street signs and posts. The county refused to maintain our signs as they were, but would replace them with metal posts and metal signs common elsewhere in the county. When the developers stopped mowing the back entrance to Meadow Brook the Homeowners voted to use dues money to pay to have someone mow and maintain an attractive appearance to the back entrance.
It should not be misunderstood that the desire to be annexed by Hoover was not primarily driven by Birmingham’s land grabbing, but by the homeowner’s desire to secure the areas tax base, places that we shop and work, into an area that would be willing to annex our homes.