Shades Creek Greenway

Shades Creek Greenway masterplan

The Shades Creek Greenway is a bicycle and pedestrian path that follows the course of Shades Creek through Homewood, serving as an extension of the Jemison Trail in Mountain Brook. The greenway, an 8- to 12-foot-wide asphalt path, was constructed with funds from the Alabama Department of Transportation, and is maintained by the City of Homewood.

The Shades Creek Greenway passes through the former Edgewood Lake bed and the 51-acre Wildwood Preserve on the site of the former Oxmoor Furnace. It is a refuge for many wildlife species. In 2017, the Audubon Society declared the greenway an Alabama Birding Trail.

The portion in Homewood was developed in three phases. The initial phase of the greenway trail is protected by a permanent easement.

Shades Creek Greenway marker

Phases

• Phase I: from Brookwood Village to Columbiana Road (2.6 miles, began in 1998, completed in 2003)
• Phase IIA: Columbiana Road, under I-65, to BioLife Plasma Services on Wildwood Court (1.5 miles, began September 2022)
• Phase IIB: Widlwood Court to Shades Creek Waste Water Treatment Plant
• Phase III: Shades Creek Waste Water Treatment Plant to West Homewood Park

External Links

• Freshwater Land Trust website
• Red Rock Ridge & Valley Trail System website
• Shades Creek Greenway Facebook page

References

• White, Marjorie L. "Shades Creek - Flowing Through Time" published by the Birmingham Historical Society in 2019.
• Embry, Neal (August 2, 2022) "Bid for Phase II of Shades Creek Greenway comes in over budget, approved by finance committee." The Homewood Star