Two major urban parks in the planning and an existing park set for a major expansion hold great potential value for Birmingham, a group of regional leaders were told Friday.
“Would it not be nice if our city were known as a green region,” Wendy Jackson, executive director of the Freshwater Land Trust, said in a presentation to about 30 elected officials and staff gathered for their monthly meeting.
State Sen. J.T. “Jabo” Waggoner, R-Vestavia Hills, sponsors the meetings to foster cooperation on issues that affect people across the region, such as transportation or recreation.
The potential value to Birmingham is that parks are clean, nonpolluting industries that pour $132 billion a year into the U.S. economy, Jackson said. “Parks are powerful economic tools. A host of studies show that parks spur economic development.”
The three park projects:
Ruffner Mountain Nature Center in eastern Birmingham, which already comprises 1,011 acres, plans to expand by about 500 acres and construct new buildings.
The Freshwater Land Trust and U.S. Steel are working to build Red Mountain Park, an 1,108-acre park that would run for 4.5 miles along the ridge of the mountain.
The City of Birmingham is developing the 21-acre Railroad Reservation Park in the heart of downtown. It is to include a paddleboat lake, amphitheater and other amenities appropriate for an urban park. Construction of its 14-acre first phase is to begin within a year.
“Cities across the country would absolutely die to have the opportunity to place 21 acres of park space in the city center,” Jackson said.
The three developments won’t come free. The railroad park is expected to cost nearly $50 million. Red Mountain is expected to cost $30 million to $50 million. Ruffner’s expansion is expected to cost around $20 million.
However, the three already have raised a total of $32.5 million from private donors, grants and public sources, Jackson said.
With the parks, Birmingham has the chance to rise to the top of lists of cities with the most green space, Jackson said, and to build a park, Red Mountain, that is bigger than New York’s Central Park.
EMAIL: kbouma@bhamnews.com
