Neighbors celebrate new section of Clairmont Walking Trail, a ‘community resource’

The Crestwood South Neighborhood Association hosted a ribbon cutting July 13 to mark the opening of a new half-mile section of the Clairmont Walking Trail.

Speakers at the event included Mayor Randall Woodfin, Birmingham City Council President Valerie Abbott and City Councilor Hunter Williams. The Crestwood Community Band also performed.

The trail — part of the Red Rock Trail System — starts in the 4700 block of Clairmont Avenue and runs about one mile to the northeast.

Phase 1 was completed in 2006, and the neighborhood began working to get city approval for the new section, called Phase 2, in 2010, according to William Meneese, chairman of the project’s development committee.

Williams helped secure funding for Phase 2, and construction was completed in April.

Area residents have worked for 15 or 20 years to bring the trail to this point, according to Kayla MacNeil, neighborhood president, who said the project has been “a resource for community engagement.”

“People seem very excited about what the future holds and the potential it has for our neighborhood,” she said.

Residents are now pursuing Phase 3, “a great and ambitious vision” that involves developing the land surrounding the trail into a linear park and connecting the trail to adjacent neighborhoods, Meneese said.