Huntsville accepts $20M grant for Pinhook Creek redevelopment, skybridge project

HUNTSVILLE — By the end of the year, a major redevelopment project that will change the city’s landscape and skyline will be underway.

A major step toward that was taken Thursday night when the City Council voted to accept a $20 million federal grant to help fund the Pedestrian Access and Redevelopment Corridor (PARC) project.

The project includes a 1,400-foot long suspension bridge over Memorial Parkway and improving the Pinhook Creek area through excavation, channel work and new bridges.

The city in 2022 won the competitive Rebuilding American Infrastructure with Sustainability and Equity (RAISE) construction grant, administered by the U.S. Department of Transportation.

The plan is part of the city’s plan to reduce flooding, improve pedestrian and cyclist connectivity, transportation safety, public park space and economic development within the core of the city.

Last year, the city approved contracts to finalize plans for the cable suspension bridge across Memorial Parkway and for Pinhook Creek channel improvements.

Components of the PARC project include:

• 1.2 miles of linear park space
• 5,600 feet of Pinhook Creek channel excavation
• 3,200 feet of low-flow channel along Pinhook Creek
• 6,000 linear feet of greenway
• Three precast pedestrian bridges over Pinhook Creek
• One concrete railroad bridge replacing the wooden bridge adjacent to Heart of Huntsville Drive
• 1,400 feet of pedestrian cable suspension bridge

Construction on the channel improvements are expected to begin late this year, the city said. The overall project has a target completion in late 2028.

The city said the PARC project creates a direct connection across two major U.S. highways for residents, workers and visitors to access vital job centers, community services and to safely travel without the need of a vehicle in addition to added benefits of flood mitigation and stream restoration measures.