Photo by Sydney Cromwell.
Altadena Valley Country Club
Golfers enjoy the 18-hole course at Altadena Valley Country Club, where the city is planning to construct a park with walking and biking trails. Photo by Sydney Cromwell.
The 18-hole golf course and clubhouse of Altadena Valley Country Club may be replaced by athletic fields and picnic tables. The city of Vestavia Hills is in negotiations with the country club’s landowners to turn part of the 90-acre property into a new recreational facility.
City Manager Jeff Downes said that responses to the 2014 citizen survey prompted the quest to build a new park. Only 45 percent of residents reported satisfaction with the number of walking and biking trails, 50 percent were satisfied with community recreational centers and 62 percent were satisfied with the number of parks in the city overall. These amenities also topped the list of issues that residents wanted the parks and recreation department to emphasize.
“We have some great, great programs, but there’s a community demand for even better,” Downes said.
In addition to stated citizen interest, Downes said city leaders have seen an increase in demand for athletic playing fields. There are multiple football, baseball and softball leagues playing in the city, as well as lacrosse and soccer teams competing for space. This demand is expected to increase, as the city is projected to be the home of an additional 1,000 to 1,500 children over the next 10 to 15 years.
“It boils down to capacity. We have a robust recreational program and a citizenry that really wants to play ball in many different fashions,” Downes said.
These concerns were already in mind for Downes and Mayor Butch Zaragoza when Keith Development Company approached them in December with an idea. The developers are working with the country club’s landowners on a deal to build a neighborhood of single-family homes on part of the club property, and Keith Development is considering donating or transferring the remaining land to the city.
“There’s a philosophy that we’re embracing as a city that I refer to as public-private partnerships,” Downes said. “It’s easier to accomplish things with partners than by yourself.”
The deal, Downes emphasized, is far from a certainty.
However, as it stands now, the city would acquire around 64 acres of land bordering the Cahaba River and Acton Road. There are no design plans yet, but athletic fields would be a definite addition and Zaragoza said walking trails and picnic areas around the club’s pond are likely. Downes said the walking trails could eventually connect to trails at nearby Patchwork Farms.
The park’s location on Acton Road, Downes said, will make it very accessible to residents in southern and eastern Vestavia Hills. The city has also been discussing the potential project with the school system to maximize opportunities for students.
“I think this is the bright spot that we see coming into Vestavia Hills,” Zaragoza said.
There are several steps standing between Vestavia Hills and its new park. The country club is currently located in unincorporated Jefferson County, so the city will have to annex the property and rezone it before moving forward. Downes said he expects the deal with Keith Development to be concluded by late April, followed by 90 to 120 days of planning.
He wants to have a design put together for public viewing over the summer, and construction on park facilities could begin in the fall of this year or early 2016.
Based on previous park projects, Downes estimated that the city would spend around $2.5 million on creating the park.
The city is also working on projects to improve existing facilities and build small “pocket parks” in a few areas. An entirely new park and athletic facilities, Downes believes, will be the crowning achievement in Vestavia Hills’ parks and recreation efforts.
“You have a multimillion-dollar effort by the city of Vestavia Hills to respond to the demands of the community,” Downes said. “The big exclamation point on all of this would be this public-private partnership.”
Creating a park at Altadena Valley comes with a number of concerns, including the environmental impact on the Cahaba River and noise, light and traffic impact on nearby residents. Downes said there will be multiple public hearings through the annexation, zoning and planning process to consider these issues and incorporate solutions into the final plan.
“This is not a foregone conclusion,” Downes said. “There will be plenty of time for community conversation [and] stakeholder input as this thing moves forward. It is the city’s intent [for] everybody — whether you’re a resident, a baseball player, a lacrosse player, just somebody who loves Vestavia Hills or that particular region — to walk away very proud of what comes from that.”
