Railroad Park Opens in September

New outdoor venue will host music, art fairs, weddings, and a variety of special events.

August 05, 2010

There were more than a few cynics who thought it would never happen, but on September 16, Birmingham will finally cut the ribbon on the 17-acre Railroad Park. What was once eight square blocks of weeds, gravel, and blighted wasteland will open as a lush, rolling field of green spaces, including 9 acres of open lawn, a 2-acre artificial lake, playgrounds, a water curtain, an elevated hiking trail, a skateboarding bowl, and a 3,500-seat amphitheater.

The result of a $20 million public/private partnership between the City of Birmingham and the Friends of the Railroad Park and more than 10 years of planning and development, it is hoped that the Railroad Park will attract a flood of people to the downtown area to use the new park for its generous amenities. Many events are proposed for the site, including arts fairs, film festivals, and concerts.

The park will be open to the public, and it will also serve as a venue for private parties. A 10,000-square-foot dedicated events space named the 17th Street Pavilion will be available for events of all kinds, including corporate events, private parties, and weddings. Recently, B&A Warehouse (located across the street from the park on First Avenue South) signed a contract with the park to provide catering for the facility, which has since formed a new division to manage events there.

"This is exciting for Birmingham," said Susan Mason, president and managing partner of B&A Warehouse. "The completion of the park has been a long time coming, but the outcome will be something the city can be very proud of. We will be very excited to see the public's reaction to the many things that are going to take place here."

In addition to the large event pavilion, B&A will manage a kiosk within the park that will be open to the public on weekdays and available for lunch parties and smaller events. "We will be serving light fare for lunch—sandwiches, salads, soups—and in the evenings we will feature wine and tapas," added Mason. Reservations will be required for groups of 10 or more. Mason says she plans to have a name for the kiosk within a matter of weeks, and she has reached out to the public on her Facebook page for suggestions.

The Railroad Park is the first of three park projects built along Birmingham's railroad corridor, which proposes to connect UAB to Sloss Furnace via hiking and biking trails. The Railroad Park is located on First Avenue South between 14th and 18th Streets.

For more information about the Railroad Park, visit www.railroadpark.org. If you are interested in information on renting the 17th Street Pavilion, or getting more information about group luncheons or dinners at the kiosk, contact Susan Mason at 326-4220.