About to Start Construction

http://www.al.com/business/index.ssf/2014/03/35_million_rotary_trail_a_key.html

BIRMINGHAM, Alabama – The Birmingham City Council’s approval Tuesday to back the Rotary Trail means the $3.5 million project can now start construction.

The city agreed to handle the bids for construction of the linear park to be built from 20th Street to 24th Street along First Avenue South that will become be a key link in the larger Red Rock Trail.

The Rotary Club of Birmingham is paying the entirety of the cost of the project. The city is improving the landscaping, sidewalks and lighting along First Avenue South that will enhance the Rotary Trail, which is mostly below ground in what is commonly referred to as “the cut,” the vestiges of when the railroad ran through the area.

Bill Jones, vice chairman at O’Neal Industries, is president of the Rotary Club of Birmingham. He said the organization wanted do to something major to mark its 100th year in the Magic City.

“One of the things the club wanted to do was leave a lasting gift to the city,” Jones said. “Rotary Trail is the perfect project to leave a legacy.”

The Rotary Trail will have a 46-foot sign that recalls the historic “Birmingham the Magic City” signs but will read “Rotary Trail in the Magic City.” Stairwells, viaduct boardwalks, amphitheaters, running and walking paths, bench seating, picnic areas, landscaping, lighting and other amenities will be used to make the attract people to use the space regularly.

Goodwyn Mills and Cawood’s designs for the Rotary Trail won Design Review Committee approval in December.

The Rotary Trail is part of a “Cross to Sloss” initiative spearheaded by the Freshwater Land Trust that will eventually have a greenway connection from the CrossPlexsports arena in Five Points West to Sloss Furnaces near the Lakeview and Avondale neighborhoods.

The Red Rock Ridge & Valley Trail System will someday connect Red Mountain Park, Vulcan Park, Railroad Park and Ruffner Mountain Park. Trails along the Cahaba River, Shades Creek, Turkey Creek, Five Mile Creek, Village Creek and even the Northern Beltline all figure into the system’s plans.

New developments such as the $64 million Regions Field baseball park to the west and the $13 million Sloss visitors center to the east would be connected by the Rotary Trail project and the Jones Valley Trail, its future street-level extension that will continue the greenway to 32nd Street.

Wendy Jackson, executive director of the Freshwater Land Trust, said the Rotary Trail is not only a key piece to the larger plan, but its visibility and connection to the Railroad Park should spur interest in seeing the rest of the greenway initiative become a reality.

“This is huge, huge, huge for the Red Rock Trail and for downtown,” Jackson said. “It’s a very important piece that will attract and engage the public while connecting the Railroad Park to Sloss Furnaces.”

Jones said when the Rotary Club of Birmingham was looking to do a signature project for its centennial, it formed a panel that heard pitches from developers with ideas. The Rotary Trail stood out from the rest.

“This project drew our attention and seemed like the perfect one to pursue,” Jones said.

Jackson said it touches so many facets for Rotary in the community.

“I really like the fact that they were looking to do something that had educational, environmental, health and redevelopment aspects,” she said. “This hits on every area.”

Jones said there is also an economic development component to the project, much like the millions of dollars in private developments that have started around the $19 million Railroad Park.

“We’re not doing this for economic development, but I can’t help but to think that this will be a shot in the arm for all of the interesting buildings along the park and First Avenue South,” he said.

Jackson said she hopes other businesses and organizations will recognize Rotary’s contribution and might want to leave their own legacy through the greenway project.

“Rotary rocks,” she said.

Jones said the city has started a pre-qualification process to identify potential bidders for the Rotary Trail project. They will then solicit bids and select the companies to do the work. Plans are to have the project complete by the end of the year or early 2015.

The work the city has already done to improve and cleanup the cut and the street will make it easier to get to work and complete the project, Jones said.

“It’s really teed up well with the streetscaping the city has been doing around the trail,” he said. “It won’t take as long as long to build as it did to get to this point.”

WELD article on the Cut

WELD Article

Design is coming together

The latest design and virtual tour through the design, by Goodwyn Mills Cawood, is up on the web, take a look and see.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QVLncWR9svI

Line Park is Official!

Great news for the City of Birmingham and the Rotary Club, as they announce their project for 2013 will be the linear park, known as Line Park. The students last summer had an opportunity to work on 4 of the most exciting blocks of the project and present their ideas and findings to members of the design community, the City and the Rotary Club. Here is to the start of a great project!

http://blog.al.com/businessnews/2013/02/rotarians_centennial_celebrati.html

New News! - Design Inspiring

Always nice to see projects and their results!
News Article

Final Boards are up

The following is a brief description from each student, from their final board. Below each description is a link to their boards. Feel free to take a look and tell us what you think! Thank you

Pratisha (Nuwakot, Nepal)

The Concept of my design is to design a Projected Trail which interacts with all of the vehicular roads that connect the site and the ground plane of  “The Cut”. Through this people can experience the industrial history of the City of Birmingham while walking through “The Eco-Cut”. Ecologically the site will be allowed to grow on its own, a industrial labyrinth.

Board 1

Board 2

Claire (Wetumpka, Alabama)

Incorporating and including ecology in our cities is becoming increasingly important. As urban sprawl continues to swallow up our free and open lands, we must account for part of this ecological loss by re-filling our cities with ecological pockets and corridors. Not only does this aid ecological systems like food chains, migration patterns and population checks, nut it also plays a big part in human enjoyment and out quality of life in cities. Bird populations have been declining for the last 50 years due mainly to loss of habitat. My proposal for Line Park is to create a place for birds, all of the species they depend upon, and also a place for people. Both migrating birds and resident birds will be able to find in line Park the four elements they need: water, cover, food and shelter. Plant species were chosen based on their functionality and performance towards birds and bird’s food chains. The overall design is meant to welcome both birds and people to Line Park, and to develop relationships between the two. Line Park has potential to spur economic development in Birmingham and my approach to this design reflects and exploits this potential.

Board 1

Board 2

Yang (Beijing, China)

Tree Roots or Grassroots Landscape: From the center extends to the surrounding, extending to the Railroad Park – Railroad Cut – Sloss Furnace. From soft materials (railroad Park) to hard materials (Sloss Furnace) relationship between hard materials and vegetations. Making a whole and I will reflect to natural and sustainable landscape design. I will this space, divide into three parts. Include the trail strategy, culture strategy and industry strategy. Making whole space. I will propose this space a mix space (trail + culture + industry). I use of canopy divided into two space – on the canopy(tree trunk) and under canopy (tree root). I want to the whole railroad cut design has become a landmark through the Birmingham City.

Board 1

Board 2

Matt (Trussville, Alabama)

The concept of this design is to use water as a social accumulator, which will in turn create a meaningful place. The shape of the “paths” are designed to increase the opportunity for social encounters by creating moments of close pedestrian proximity.

This site is a key link for Railroad Park and Sloss Furnace. This link is being further developed by designing subtle hints to tie the two spaces together. Water will almost always attract people, but the water in the “Canal Walk” will serve as a visual connection to Railroad Park’s use of water. The condition of the walls of this space are simple, efficient concrete walls, which ties to the industrial history of this specific site and of the City of Birmingham as a whole. This industrial feeling will serve as a connection to Sloss Furnace.

Board 1

Board 2

Fei (Beijing, China)

This project theme is Ecology Education. I use three main elements to design this site, Seasonal Plant, Storm Water and Activity area. I want to use these elements to education people the ecology landscape. There are four season plant in the site and the storm water high will change during the different season. Then I create a path to connect these elements to achieve the purpose of education.

Board 1

Board 2

Raf (Miami, Florida)

The site commonly referred to as “The Cut" is a 26 foot wide railway easement that was once used to top load and unload freight trains. The site offers some unique potential not only because of its characteristics (there aren't many cities that have a 4 block long 26 foot wide alleyway) but also because of its location between Railroad Park and Sloss Furnace as well as the Museum, Theatre and Loft districts to the north and UAB's campus to the south. Other ASSETS along "The Cut" include the BBVA building, new housing, ample parking, a few open green spaces and low vacancies thanks to several design firms and other businesses along 1^st Ave S. Some ISSUES are the unsafe and unpleasant pedestrian environments which is too hot during the summer and has too much traffic at high speeds at 22nd street to be considered a safe crossing. The railroad line to the North also causes some accessibility problems and the west end of “The Cut", where traffic merges together produces an unsafe pedestrian space.

Board 1

Board 2

Greg (Atlanta, Georgia)

Line Park – Cultural Park and Greenspace

Line Park is a multi-use greenspace and cultural park, situated in central Birmingham. Focusing on three aspects of culture (History, Arts, and Social Interactions), Line Park is a place for a wide range of uses by a diverse range of people. Street festivals, art exhibits, open air markets, and may other activities are all possibilities. From large city-wide events, to small family functions, Line Park is a vibrant and place to celebrate the rich culture of Birmingham.

Board 1

Board 2

Final Review

Final Review
The students had their final review this past Thursday. Ben and I would like to give a big thank you to everyone who dropped by to critique the students’ work. Represented in the review group were Birmingham City, Operation New Birmingham, Rotary Club, the Community Foundation, Fresh Water Land Trust, The Regional Planning Commission, and Auburn University as well as several local architecture and landscape architecture firms. It was a great turn out, and the enthusiasm from the group for the cut project was a perfect way for the students to end their time in Birmingham. Later Thursday night and the following Friday, the students moved out of the Alabama School of Fine Arts and headed back to Auburn. We are very thankful to everyone for their hospitality throughout these last five weeks, and we would like to give a special thanks to Cheryl, Kay, and Matt for allowing us to take over their studio space for the summer semester. Please stay tuned for future postings of the students final design boards.

Location:Birmingham, AL

It's Official

It's official, the City and Rotary are going to improve The Cut! Such great news and such a needed pedestrian improvement to help link some of the areas great assets!
Here is link to the news article!
This is the last day the students and I will meet. I think I can speak for both Kelly and myself, and express how much fun we have had these past 5 weeks with the students!
They have had such a unique opportunity to live, work and focus on such a great project. It's rare when you get chances like this to take time and to focus your energies on one goal, one project and one idea. I can't wait to see what they all present this afternoon to the stakeholders!
Since it has been the last week of work for the students, Kelly and I have cut back on the time we spent with the students to really let them work. Every one of them have grown and evolved their ideas, it has been a great process to watch. Along the way I can only hope they have learned some new skills and have some new tools that they can use as they go forward in their studies and careers. Here's to 5 great weeks of work and to careers filled with making a difference!

Location:Birmingham AL

Wrapping up

Hey Beautiful Birmingham! Hey Everyone! My name is Yang Wang. I grew up in Beijing, China. I'm a Capital Normal University Landscape Architecture undergraduate and a second year Master of Landscape Architecture Auburn University student. In short five weeks studio is about to end here. The 'Railroad Cut' project towards the end. Remember that this time is fine and happy. Starting from the map analysis to the present specific implementation, each step is very strict, manifested the very strong logic. In this process, we have lost direction and confused, but through the guidance of professor and two reviews feedback, help us out of confusion. At the same time, it was very nice to get to meet some stakeholders and local landscape designers and hear their theory input. ‘Why?’ this is probably the five weeks lots of times a word, but it is precisely because of the continuous questions that each individual design in continuous improvement. During this time we also going to the field trip research from a variety types of materials, it included timber, stone, and brick harvested both locally here in Birmingham as well as throughout Alabama and the Southeast. And visited a local office of landscape architecture design, it whole design processes with have a new explanation. Next step we will continue to work hard and make a wonderful place for this ‘Railroad Cut’. As soon as possible will final review, everyone on the project for doing a last effort, here I wish everyone good luck. Finally, I will appreciate Auburn University, Alabama School of Fine Arts, our professors Ben Wieseman and Kelly Homan have given us in working on this exciting project this summer 2012 semester.
Happy July 26th to everyone! I love Birmingham! I love this magic studio!

Location:Birmingham al

Student again

Hey everyone, my name is Matt Phillips. I'm an Auburn University Horticulture graduate and a second year Master of Landscape Architecture student. I grew up in Trussville, so I am fairly familiar with the city of Birmingham. Although, working in Birmingham in a studio environment provides a completely different perspective. The approach to this studio is more of a design firm approach, which has helped get us prepared for life on the outside. It has been both challenging and rewarding in the knowlege and skills gained during these few weeks. Ben and Kelly's guidance toward the way a firm works has allowed me to tailor my skills to be more productive both conceptually and graphically. The site for this project has been interesting because it has a lot of potential to help connect the city, while also catalyzing development around it. This potential along with the uniqueness and history of the site makes this a very exciting project for both the AU MLA program and residents of Birmingham. Although we've stayed very busy in studio, in our off time we've been able to enjoy many of the assets that help make Birmingham what it is, which has been both interesting and fun. There's not much time left in the semester, so we should be extremely productive these next few days!

Location:Birmingham al

Student updates

An Intense Five Weeks
​My name is Raf Egües. I'm from Miami, Florida and am another one of the seven masters of Landscape Architecture students up here in Birmingham this summer at Auburn's Urban Studio running through July 27th. Well, we're almost there, just six more days until our final presentations. Our five weeks here in the Auburn Urban Studio sure have flown by. It's been a challenging time which has helped me develop some important design skills. This project has been great at challenging me to use my undergraduate education in Public Administration as well as my masters work in Community Planning and now Landscape Architecture to work towards a great design to this unique space we've come to call “The Cut”. I find myself much more comfortable wrestling with concepts and ideas for my design and working through various iterations to find what works best for the space, the city and the community.
​Aside from the 10am to 6 pm studio workdays we have also had a few adventures both for class and on our own time. One of those adventures was our recent trip down to Marion, Alabama. We were sent there to document our first impressions of this small county seat of a little over 3,500 people. It was a nice little town packed with history and character, and the lunch we had at Dottie's in downtown was delicious. Our month long membership at First Avenue Rocks has proved to be really fun and quite a challenge. Not only have I gotten a great fun workout but it has also given me an excuse to pry myself away from my studio work at the end of the day to clear my head. An added bonus is that First Avenue Rocks is located at the eastern end of our site on 1st avenue south and 24th street so we get to pass by “The Cut” every afternoon, helping me become better acquainted with the site.
​Local professionals have been very hospitable during our stay here, both in coming to visit our studio like Nimrod Long did yesterday to inviting us out to see their firm like Stephen Schrader and Tommy Holcombe of HNP did last week. We appreciate their hospitality. Our two reviews have yielded a lot of constructive feedback that has helped us push on towards our final design proposals. I look forward to seeing what our last week of work yields for our presentations next week. I hope we present some great ideas that help this area of Birmingham become a vibrant link between beautiful Railroad Park and Sloss Furnaces. I appreciate the opportunity Auburn University, Alabama School of Fine Arts, The City of Birmingham, ONB, Rotary Club of Birmingham and our professors Ben Wieseman and Kelly Homan have given us in working on such an exciting project this summer. -Rafael “Raf” Egües




Hi everyone. I am Fei Xiong a second year student of Masters in Landscape Architecture from Auburn University. I completed my four years undergraduate in Environment Design degree from Architecture Program, Tianjin Finance & Economics University, China. Before I came to America that I learn lots of knowledge about Environment Design which is similar to Landscape program. But I feel a huge different way of education between China and America when I came to United State. Here are paying more attention to the logic of education and introductory education here which is very helpful to me. I really enjoy to study in Auburn University. And now we are in Birmingham and design for the “cut” project. I really excited about the cut project going to be activated. I realized the Birmingham city is a special city and it has lots of potential and opportunities to development. This city has lot of history and lot of old structures. Now one of our design purposes is to connect Railroad Park, Cut and Sloss Furnaces. This is the fourth week we been here to design the site and we already had two reviews within last four week. I’m very grateful to those valuable beedback from professors and residents. It was very helpful to my design and made our design became more practical. I like this project very much and also thanks for the people who give us very valuable opinions. We will continue to work hard and make a wonderful place for this beautiful city.

Location:Birmingham, AL

Student field trip

Evolutia Field Trip
The students recently took a field trip to both Evolutia’s material warehouse located on 35th ave North as well as their showcase room located in downtown Homewood http://evolutiamade.com/ . The students spent several hours touring the facility and learning about the process of reclaiming valuable materials for adaptive reuse projects. Materials included timber, steal, stone, and brick harvested both locally here in Birmingham as well as throughout Alabama and the Southeast. Starting at the warehouse, the students learned about various types of raw materials, methods of processing these materials, and deconstruction techniques. At the showroom they saw finished products ranging from benches to exterior wall claddings to countertops. A big thanks to our tour guide Robert who took time out of his day to show us around and teach us the value in harvesting materials.

Location:Birmingham AL