Railroad Park, Birmingham Alabama

Mom, Dad, and I visited the recently completed Railroad Park in downtown Birmingham on a sunny weekend day. People were walking, playing frisbee, doing tricks on skateboards and bikes, rolling down slopes, and climbing on playground equipment. I was impressed by the imaginative and playful design elements (like the skate bowls and gabion walls topped with bright yellow seating surfaces), the landscape-based water filtration system, and the captivating views of trains in motion as well as part of Birmingham's industrial skyline. This is an exciting new place for Birmingham: it celebrates the city's heritage while offering a creatively-designed,contemporary public space for daily activities as well as community events. The city and planners are hoping to build on the park's success and to create a stronger surrounding district (including a new baseball park set to break ground in February) and also to reclaim more vacant land along the rail.