The Birmingham Parks board has decide to forward a proposal to the city council that would cede a great quantity of George Ward park to a baseball training facility. We submit that George Ward Park, home of Disc Golf Birmingham, Birmingham Cricket League, Birmingham senior softball and several other athletic events such as the Southern Shootout and several other annual softball tournaments would lose the ability for these entities to utilize the park.

Initial plans show offices and classrooms on top of the only disc golf course in the city, which is considered an “A” tier course, and is home to a dozen tournaments, including the nationally recognized Magic City Mega Bowl, per year as well as spring, summer, and fall league play. They also show changes to the softball complex, built by the Glen Iris neighborhood association, that would ruin this venue as a possible venue for the events held there by making the now public fields part of the private MLB Academy.

George Ward Park is a vital and important asset for our city and to destroy this for an entity that offers no return on our investment or benefit for the citizens of Birmingham is a travesty, especially when one considers the vast number of large and unused municipal properties available to the city.

Councilors Williams and Abbott are opposed to this proposal, recognizing the negative fiscal and societal impacts that the proposal would bring, and we will act in support of these councilors. We are currently organizing a bannering campaign for Sunday and Monday and will be in attendance, en masse, at the Tuesday morning City Council meeting.

We would welcome any publicity and coverage of this issue that can be afforded to us and fervently hope that you will join us as voices in opposition to this remarkably poor management of the city’s resources.

Please understand, We as a community think the idea of MLBA coming to Birmingham is a great thing!! Just not at George Ward IT IS IN USE!!!





Your Signature is needed, to save OUR park!!!