On the afternoon of October 8, the paperwork for Birmingham Park was signed at the park itself. Mayor Peyton Jamison and Community Development and Public Works Director Sara Leaders signed for the City of Milton. Dr. Chip Reed, founder of the Georgia-Alabama Land Trust, and Katie Dorris, its Advancement Manager, signed for the nonprofit. In the city's announcement, the Mayor called it a "monumental day for the City of Milton."
The ceremony followed a unanimous City Council vote on October 5. That vote approved a $20,000 conservation easement covering about 185 acres of the park. For anyone who walks or rides these trails, the practical part of the agreement is what it still lets the city build. That list lines up almost item for item with a state-funded upgrade project Milton already has in the works. The park's natural character is now fixed for good. The restroom, the extra parking and the rerouted trails are coming on a separate, slower clock.
What the Easement Locks In
Appen Media's Milton Herald reported that the easement permanently limits how the land can be used, to protect the park's open spaces, wildlife habitat, water resources and scenic character. It allows low-impact recreation and education, with hiking, biking, horseback riding, nature observation and environmental education named specifically. It restricts development and any use that would undercut those conservation goals.
The Georgia-Alabama Land Trust will hold, monitor and steward the easement. Milton stays the owner and manager of the park. The size is unusual. The city says this is now the largest easement the Trust stewards in Fulton County, more than twice as large as the next biggest. The Trust protects more than 518,000 acres across over 1,360 properties in Georgia, Alabama and nearby states.
The rights Milton kept matter most for anyone hoping for better facilities. According to Appen and the city, the city can still:
- Maintain the park's existing trails
- Build new trails
- Add signage, seating and shelters
- Add parking, restrooms and other utilities
Each improvement has to fit the spirit of the agreement, which the city sums up as keeping Birmingham Park's natural look and feel forever. Resident Julie Zahner Bailey spoke at the October 5 meeting. As quoted by the Milton Herald, she said:
"This beautiful contiguous green space is one of those special places that helps to define the character of Milton."
The Upgrade List Already Fits Inside Those Rights
Last spring, the Georgia Department of Natural Resources picked a Milton plan for Birmingham Park as one of 17 projects statewide to receive grants from the Recreational Trails Program. That program is federally funded and run by the state. The $200,000 grant is expected to cover about half the project cost. The rest comes from money the city has set aside for years specifically for Birmingham Park upgrades.
The Birmingham Park Project page lists five pieces:
| Planned improvement | Detail from the city | Closest reserved right, as we read the city's summary |
|---|---|---|
| Restroom | Prefabricated unit near the trailhead, like the one at Providence Park | Restrooms and utilities |
| Parking | About 15 more spaces, all gravel except two ADA-compliant spots | Parking |
| Trail reroutes | Two segments moved to make them safer | Maintaining and building trails |
| Slope planting | Bushes on a steep stretch beside one trail | Maintaining existing trails |
| Bridge | A small bridge replaced to help prevent stream erosion | Maintaining existing trails |
The city says every part of the project comes from recommendations in community-driven plans that City Council approved. Those include the Comprehensive Parks and Recreation Master Plan and the Milton Community Trails Prioritization Plan. The third column is our own matching of each item to the rights the city and Appen described, not a ruling from the agreement itself. The Land Trust is the party that will monitor whether improvements keep the park's natural look and feel. The site plans are posted as zoomable PDFs. One covers the broader park layout and the other covers the parking and restroom area.
The Clock Behind the Upgrades
The easement took effect the day it was signed. The upgrades follow their own timeline:
- March 2026. Georgia DNR announces the 17 grant selections. Selected applicants are invited to submit final applications.
- April 2026. Milton says it expects the funds by the end of the year. After that, local governments have up to 24 months to use them.
- July 15, 2026. The Milton Equestrian Committee gets a briefing on the plans. The city repeats the year-end funding estimate and the 24-month window.
- October 5 and 8, 2026. Council approves the easement and the agreement is signed at the park.
- End of 2026. Grant funds are expected to arrive.
- Up to 24 months after that. The window the city describes for using the grant funds.
The city's project page has no construction start date, no closure plan for trails or parking, and no completion date. If the money arrives on schedule, the funding window would stretch into late 2028, though that is a spending window, not a construction deadline. The park you walk this fall and winter will likely look the way it does now. The project page is where schedule updates are most likely to appear first.
The Trails You Have This Fall
The city describes Birmingham Park as nine multi-use, natural-surface trails used by equestrians and hikers. The official trail map gives these lengths:
| Trail | Length |
|---|---|
| Blue | 1.41 mi |
| Yellow | 1.10 mi |
| Green | 0.65 mi |
| Purple | 0.53 mi |
| Red | 0.39 mi |
| White | 0.36 mi |
| Pink | 0.35 mi |
| Orange | 0.15 mi |
| Red-Yellow | 0.04 mi |
| Meadow Loop | 0.41 mi |
| Trail Access Road | 0.77 mi |
The nine colored trails add up to just under five miles. With the Meadow Loop and the access road, the total comes to a little over six. That matches the "6 miles of equestrian trails" in Appen Media's grant coverage. Blue and Yellow together make up more than half of the colored-trail mileage. The short connectors like Orange and Red-Yellow let you shorten or lengthen a loop.
Horses are a big part of the park's identity. The city says the Equestrian Committee pays special attention to Birmingham Park, and the park already has hitching posts and water sources for horses. A 2022 city update confirmed a second parking lot that can handle horse trailers.
A few rules apply at all Milton parks. Parks are open sunrise to sunset, dogs must stay leashed, visitors stay on marked trails, and dog waste has to be disposed of properly. Bikes are the gray area. The easement lists biking as an allowed activity, but the city's park rules and regulations ban bicycles outside designated areas, and the Birmingham Park listing doesn't name any designated bike trails. Check with Milton Parks and Recreation before bringing a mountain bike.
Getting There, and Where to Stop After
The trailhead is at 750 Hickory Flat Road, off Hickory Flat Road near Birmingham Crossroads. The city defines the crossroads as the intersection of Birmingham Highway, also called SR 372, and Birmingham Road. Fire Station 43 and the City Public Works Yard are nearby landmarks.
If you come from the Freemanville Road side, the bridge over Cooper Sandy Creek is worth checking before you leave. It sits between Providence Road and Landrum Road. It has been closed since GDOT took out the old bridge in late May. Drivers have been detoured to Birmingham Highway, and Landrum Road has been closed to through traffic. As of the city's September 17 update, the new bridge was on track to reopen by the end of October. That's close to this week, so look at the city's news page for the latest before you choose a route.
The closest place to stop afterward is The Marketplace at Birmingham Village at 980 Birmingham Road. Publix there is open daily from 7 a.m. to 10 p.m. and has a deli and bakery. In the same center, El Castillo Mexicano offers dine-in daily from 11 a.m. to 9 p.m. China Sky does takeout Monday through Saturday. For a morning hike, Scottsdale Farms at 15639 Birmingham Highway is a bit farther from the crossroads. It has a garden center and a café and market open Tuesday through Sunday, 9 a.m. to 3 p.m.
In his 2025 State of the City address, Mayor Jamison pledged to protect Birmingham Park. On October 5, he told the council, as the Milton Herald reported, "I'm looking forward to bringing my grandkids to Birmingham Park."
When parkland near Birmingham Crossroads is protected for good, the land around it is easier to plan around too. If you own near Hickory Flat Road or Birmingham Highway and want to know how being close to a permanently protected park fits into your home's story, David Huang Group is happy to talk it through in English or Mandarin. Schedule a Free Market Consultation whenever it suits you.
