By Deidra M. Lemons
January 23, 2004 - Montgomery Advertiser
Article reprinted with the express permission of the Montgomery Advertiser.
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| Larry Grewelle looks at a map Thursday as members of the Montgomery Clean City Commission document the landscape along Cypress Creek from North Ripley Street to the Alabama River. The commission is working to preserve the wetland and possibly build a walking trail along the creek bank. -- Julie Bennett Advertiser |
For decades, Cypress Creek, a natural creek connecting three ponds, has been neglected and used as a dumping ground. A team of Montgomery residents wants to turn the creek, which runs through downtown Montgomery's industrial and warehouse district and connects to the Alabama River at the site of the amphitheater, into a nature preserve and hiking path. The group received a $1,000 grant from the Kodak Foundation to conduct a feasibility study to determine if the area could be turned into a walking and hiking trail, Larry Grewelle, chairman of the tree committee, said.
"This creek runs 24-7 and has been used as a dumping station," Grewelle said. "The creek was there before us, and if we preserve it and clean it up, it will be here for generations to come."
The Montgomery Clean City Commission led a cleanup last year to remove debris from one pond.
"Most people don't know the creek even exists because it is tucked behind a layer of brush," said Susan Carmichael, director of the commission. "But there are several areas that would make great pocket parks along the creek's banks. We need to display this natural resource."
The group is expected to complete the feasibility study in the spring and release its findings to the city.
"The spring study will allow us to see the area in full bloom and observe the type of natural vegetation and animals that live in the area," said Betsy Sheldon, the group's grant manager and consultant. The group also observed the hydrology, or how high the water could rise, of the creek.
Sheldon said the group's next step would be to create a plan that would be given to the city planning and community development department.
"Once the study is in, it is up to the city to determine when they would begin purchasing the land on either side of the creek," she said.
Chris Brown, a neighborhood activist, said she wants the walking trail because it could help link neighborhoods across the city.
"There is a railroad track that runs behind the new baseball stadium, along the creek and that runs along the side of several neighborhoods," she said. "The Rails-to-Trails program would help us turn an abandoned rail line into a walking trail through the historic neighborhoods."
Mark Waldo, a representative from Old Alabama Rails, joined the group to see how the possible trail could tie into his group's plans to build a museum in the old Western of Alabama railroad shop.
"When the museum is open, guests could walk out the front door and be only feet away from the nature trail," he said.
Bob Hastings, from Alabama Natural Heritage, a part of The Nature Conservancy, a group which buys land for nature preservation, said the Cypress Creek area would be a perfect place for a nature park and trail.