An estimated crowd of more than 300 people were on hand as city and state leaders welcomed the public to Springville for the opening weekend of Alabama’s newest Forever Wild project, Big Canoe Creek Nature Preserve during a ribbon cutting ceremony on February 2.
The park officially opened to the public on February 3. More than 730 guests visited the park on its first official day.
“I couldn’t believe the crowd. That just shows how important this is to the community,” said Blankenship. “When you talk about the biodiversity of Alabama, we really are blessed here with all of the aquatic species, all the terrestrial species, the mussels, the darters. Having a place like this protected not only for recreation but also for all the different species in the area is so important,” he said.
Speakers at the opening ceremony included Doug Morrison, Springville Mayor Dave Thomas, St. Clair County Commission Chairman Stan Batemon and Chris Blankenship, ADCNR Commissioner and Chairman of the Forever Wild Land Trust Board of Trustees.
“Welcome to the Big Canoe Creek Nature Preserve. This is 422 acres, a Forever Wild property. We have about 7.4 miles of trails,” said Doug Morrison, Big Canoe Creek Nature Preserve Manager for the city of Springville, during the ribbon cutting ceremony.
“Everybody’s trying to do economic development, trying to bring companies in, to bring families in, to grow their communities and their subdivisions,” Blankeship said. “It is very rare to have a community like this that saw the potential for a place like this and really desired to set it aside for the people so that as their community grows they can still have a place like this for the quality of life.”
“We’re number four in the nation in our biodiversity but we’re number one in the nation for aquatic species,” Morrison said. “This land was supposed to be developed in 2008. We heard about that and then, I guess, the economy took a dive and they scrapped their plans to develop. And we found out about a program called Forever Wild, and thank goodness we did,” he added.
“It’s generational. It will outlive us all,” said Thomas speaking about the impact of the project on the community. “It will be impactful not just for Springville but for the whole county and the area.”
“A lot of communities really concentrate on economic development,” said Batemon who once served as game warden in the area. “This is economic development. This is the ground level of economic development.” He said nature preserves where teens can hike and fish help develop a stronger work ethic which benefits workforce development.
The city expects to benefit from visitors to the preserve who spend more money in Springville, but Thomas stressed the bigger picture of the investment in the property.
“We anticipate a positive economic impact for Springville, but it’s really more about conservation, education, and recreation,” Thomas said speaking to The Tribune. “We’re improving the quality of life for our residents; and as responsible stewards, we’re leading by example.”
The Preserve will be open at 7 a.m. Wednesday through Sunday each week. The park will close at 5 p.m. during the winter months of November through February and will remain open until 7 p.m. during the rest of the year. Learn more by visiting bigcanoecreekpreserve.org.