Representatives from the Freshwater Land Trust, City of Homewood, Friends of Shades Creek, Goodwyn Mills Cawood (GMC) and many others recently came together to cut the ribbon on the Phase II extension of the Shades Creek Greenway.
The newly opened segment stretches 1.4 miles, beginning west of the Wildwood Shopping Center across from John Carroll Catholic High School and linking up with the original section at Columbiana Road. But the 1.4-mile trail is just a small piece of a much larger puzzle.
The Shades Creek Greenway is a section of the Red Rock Trail System aimed at creating a 36-mile loop around the greater Birmingham metro area. When completed, this project will connect Birmingham, Fairfield, Irondale and Homewood.
“Any project like this takes many partnerships with everybody coming together and that has been the case with this trail,” Jane Reed Ross, senior landscape architect at GMC, said. “When we started working on this trail in the 1990s, little did we know this would grow into the Red Rock Trail system championed by the Freshwater Land Trust. They are creating a meaningful system that people are starting to recognize. It’s wonderful that the trail is officially open and that we are connecting with a larger system – and our next step is to push it west to Red Mountain Park, where it will connect with the trails in Birmingham.”
The overall Red Rock Trail System has a goal of creating 500 miles of trails spanning Jefferson County, Alabama. So far, 129 miles have been completed, including the new Shades Creek Greenway extension.
The Shades Creek Greenway has already welcomed so many visitors and residents alike – even before it was officially open, you could find people walking or running on the trail, further proving its need. This Homewood trail averages 145,600 annual visitors who come to walk, run and cycle. The trail connects three major shopping areas, six neighborhoods, two high schools and a university. People often associate the trail with recreation and exercise to improve their health.
It is also an alternative mode of transportation where you can walk or ride to school, a store or another neighborhood. This helps with congestion in the road network, pollution and improves the quality of life and health of users. The funding source originated through federal transportation dollars named the Congestion Mitigation and Air Quality (CMAQ).
This short portion of the bigger picture is a step in the right direction to make Jefferson County a better, healthier place to increase the quality of life for all.
The Beginnings of the Red Rock Trail System
The Red Rock Trail system was originally proposed in 2010 by the Freshwater Land Trust under the Jefferson County Department of Health and the Health Action Partnership, with the planning process labeled “Our One Mile” being led by GMC. Once completed, the trail system will consist of seven corridors: Jones Valley and Valley Creek, Village Creek, Five Mile Creek, Shades Creek, Cahaba River and Turkey Creek.
The Red Rock Trail system was originally proposed in 2010 by the Freshwater Land Trust under the Jefferson County Department of Health and the Health Action Partnership, with the planning process labeled “Our One Mile” being led by GMC. Once completed, the trail system will consist of seven corridors: Jones Valley and Valley Creek, Village Creek, Five Mile Creek, Shades Creek, Cahaba River and Turkey Creek.
The GMC team organized over fifty stakeholder meetings with diverse groups in Jefferson County to discuss important destinations and prospective trail routes. The meetings offered participants the opportunity to illustrate optimal trail routes and to make their own recommendations for their “One Mile,” hence the name of the project. Over 3,000 separate comments were provided by the public through both the physical and virtual stakeholder meetings.
The design team held follow-up workshops where elected officials, citizens and advocates were invited to provide further input. Extensive field visits were conducted to examine prospective path routes and to verify and assess existing infrastructure that would become part of the trail network.
Jefferson County has its unique history, features, destinations and landscapes. Some potential examples of local design elements for the system include Vulcan Park, the Cahaba River, Sloss Furnace, Red Mountain Park, Ruffner Mountain Preserve, Pepper Place, Railroad Park, Miles College, Samford University and the University of Alabama at Birmingham as well as other schools, shopping areas, churches and parks. Parks and trails are spaces that everyone can enjoy and help build community. There are few public spaces that bring people together into active lifestyles connected with nature, building their sense of well-being and health like a greenspace does.
