Community Spaces Committee discusses possible park plans

The parks of Vestavia Hills have a lot in their future.

That was made clear during a town hall meeting with the Community Spaces Committee the evening of Nov. 15. 

Lead by parks and recreation board member and committee chair Tommy Dazzio, the meeting featured a presentation that included an in-depth conceptual plan for future potential upgrades within the community spaces of Vestavia. 

Each of the four existing parks within the city have their own schedule and plans, with many addressing current issues such as parking and field drainage and expanding or renovating existing buildings.

The committee also brought up the idea of creating a "Miracle Field" for special needs players and creating more field spaces within Altadena Park. Because the former Berry School was so recently acquired, adjustments to that facility are to be determined. 

The main focus of the evening was on Wald Park, the original target of the committee.

Currently, there is a homeowner's plot directly on the other side of the wooded portion of Wald Park that is not owned by the Vestavia, but the city has met with the homeowner and they are willing to sell the property to the city, Dazzio said.

After looking at past data and public input, the committee recommended numerous upgrades to the park through two different plans. While both plans are contingent on the purchase of the extra plot of land, both address numerous upgrades to the park which include new pool facilities, covered batting cages, updated tennis courts and a new "premier green space." 

"We believe the green space is one of the main components of this park," Dazzio said, mentioning that with these plans the committee is hoping to create in Wald the "destination park" it has envisioned for Vestavia. The green space would be approximately the same size as Homewood Central Park, have walking paths and a connection to play areas for children. 

"This is the type of thing that we hope that would help developers to make a decision to spend money and redevelop areas in Vestavia," Dazzio said. 

Another idea presented for Wald Park is the construction of a new multi-purpose recreation facility, which would replace the current lodge. The three proposals for this project varied in size and mainly focused on multi-purpose courts, administration facilities and pool support facilities. Dazzio also talked about the idea of incorporating a community center in the multi-purpose recreation facility, however, that space was only included in one of the three of the concepts.

To prepare for the possibility of not including the community center at Wald Park, the city has already set communications in motion to purchase the Gold's Gym that is adjacent to City Hall. Through some renovations, the gym could be turned in to a civic center to house various community events. 

To complete all of the upgrades to all of the parks, the preliminary, estimated cost is currently $50 million, with $37 million of the budget going toward the renovations of Wald Park and the purchase of Gold's Gym. 

Immediately following the presentation, Dazzio, together with City Manager Jeff Downes, opened up an online survey through Vestavia Hills Listens for attendees, who were mainly residents of West Vestavia, to voice their concerns and opinions. While many were pleased with the proposed ideas for the parks and were excited for how they would benefit the community, a large concern was the cost.

Downes again made the important reminder that the presentation contained only conceptual designs, and that no plans had been passed on to city council for further action. 

"This will be presented to the city council after we get your input through these town hall meetings, and the city council will look at it, and we're confident that the city council will figure out a way to pay for it," Dazzio said. 

Once approved by city council, planning and designing for the parks could take between 10-12 months, and construction could take about 18 months, depending on if it was completed in phases or all at once. 

Residents of Vestavia can learn more about the project and include their opinion in the online forum here. 

There will be two more town halls to discuss the Community Spaces Committee's proposals. The next will be on Tuesday, Nov. 22 at 7:30 a.m., and on Tuesday, Dec. 6 at noon.