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Abstract for presentation (Poster or Podium)

Sustainable Transportation & Urban Development

City Walk Bham: Where Birmingham Connects

Sunday, June 16, 2024
3:00 PM - 4:15 PM ET
Room: Galleria
Abstract:

City Walk BHAM: Where Birmingham Connects


The Central Business District (CBD) in the city of Birmingham, Alabama had been divided by the bridges of Interstates 59/20 for many decades.  As the bridges began to deteriorate, the Alabama Department of Transportation (ALDOT) and the Federal Highway Administration (FHWA) looked for options to open the area and connect the surrounding communities.  City Walk BHAM was born out of this desire: a public space full of community resources where Birmingham could connect! 

City Walk BHAM is a 10-block, 31-acre linear space stretching across one mile under the newly rebuilt interstate bridges.  City Walk provides a place for public connection through recreation, amphitheaters, skating (both skate rink and skate park), outdoor classrooms, a dog park, a world-class playground, and more.  After five years of conceptual design and rigorous public involvement, design of the expansive space began in earnest in 2019, and construction began in May 2021.  Construction was completed in time for The World Games 2022.  “The World Games Plaza” came to City Walk BHAM because it was centrally located to the Opening/Closing Ceremonies stadium. 

Birmingham is turning this once neglected space beneath the interstate from a blighted parking lot into a vibrant public space. 

City Walk BHAM – Where Birmingham Connects

Learning Objectives:

Attendees can expect to learn the following from this session:
  • view public infrastructure projects as a vehicle to deliver vibrant public spaces, reconnect communities, and add to the quality of life for communities.
  • align public outreach and engagement, and how creative facilitation of the engagement process can result in unexpected and wonderful outcomes that ensure community excitement, long-term support, and successful use.
  • initiate creative improvement of public infrastructure with intentional programming and maintenance, in order to achieve economic revitalization of an urban environment that benefits property owners, businesses, and the surrounding community.
  • understand the value of collaboration between state, public, private agencies, and the general public to ensure the successful implementation of urban infrastructure to add quality of life in a community.