Birmingham: Rail Road Park

Nineteen acres of unused spaced along the railroad tracks between downtown Birmingham and UAB were transformed into Rail Road Park, a popular site for many activities – from walking the Rail Trail that extends the length of the park to ice skating in winter. Walls and seating areas are constructed from bricks and objects unearthed on the site, including hand-cast bricks and original cobblestone. The park comprises 30 percent water with a lake, a rain curtain, a bio-filtration wetlands area and numerous ponds and streams. Rail Road Park won the 2012 Urban Land Institute’s Urban Open Space Award, beating out such parks as New York City’s exceedingly popular High Line.

Photo credit: MackNally Land Design