We wanted to let you all know that the Boulder Field parking area for Moss Rock Preserve, which is on U.S. Steel land, will be closed tomorrow as their contractor removes all the trees on surrounding U.S. Steel land in preparation for their Preserve community town center development that has been approved for years but recently modified. No clearing will occur inside the boundaries of the City of Hoover owned Moss Rock Preserve. As you may remember, we informed you all about this upcoming project in posts late last year. Heavy logging equipment will be in this area tomorrow, so for your own safety do not try enter Moss Rock Preserve from that side. Enter Moss Rock Preserve through the Simmons or Sulfur Springs Parking lots.
As we understand it, the logging on U.S. Steel land will be finished around the immediate area of the US. Steel owned parking lot in one day, and the parking lot will hopefully be reopened this weekend for access to the adjacent Boulder Field which is part of the city owned Moss Rock Preserve.
As we stated above, no clearing will occur inside the boundaries of the City of Hoover owned Moss Rock Preserve. However, anyone who enters Moss Rock via this parking lot should be prepared for major changes in the scenery surrounding the parking lot. The boundary of the city owned Moss Rock Preserve does not begin until you reach the top of the boulders so everything you walk thru from the parking lot to the Boulder Field is owned by U.S. Steel. Recently modified zoning plans for the proposed development leave a sizable buffer of U.S. Steel land around the adjacent city owned Boulder Field in Moss Rock Preserve, but based on the survey markers all trees will be cleared approximately 75-100 feet into the woods along the trail leading from the parking lot to the Boulder Field. The others sides of the parking lot will be cleared of trees in a similar matter. The logging will be part of the land clearing process for the town center development on U.S. Steel land that will extend on the north side of Preserve Parkway basically between the two traffic circles. The logging on U.S. Steel land will start around the Boulder Field parking lot and move east toward the other traffic circle over following days. While the Boulder Field parking lot on U.S. Steel land will be reopened for at least the next few weeks to months, it will eventually be permanently closed and graded to become part of the upcoming town center development. Before that parking lot is permanently closed a small temporary parking lot for Boulder Field users is supposed to be developed to the southwest of the current parking lot along an area of U.S. Steel land that was cleared a few years ago for an access road back when fill dirt was removed from the current Boulder Field parking area.
As we have mentioned in prior post, when the southern purchase boundary of Moss Rock Preserve was laid out years ago unfortunately the top of the Boulder Field rocks were used to mark the boundary which left no city owned land as buffer around the Boulder Field. The adjacent U.S. Steel land has been zoned for development basically since that time as well, and development of their town center has been planned and approved for years. While the development of this U.S. Steel land will change the character of the area near the Boulder Field, there would be much greater change without the sizeable zoning based buffer on U.S. Steel land around the city owned Boulder Field. As we posted before, the current conservation goal is to permanently protect the buffer around the Boulder Field and some adjacent land (including the cleared area containing the old access road) for a permanent parking area and possibly other amenities (ex. restrooms, nature center) for those using the Boulder Field. This 8 acre area lies immediately south of the Boulder Field and west of the town center development. U.S. Steel is willing to discuss the acquisition of that 8 acres of their land by the City of Hoover. However, as we understand it, understandably other matters have been the focus of attention for City of Hoover officials over the last few months. Now would be a good time for Hoover residents to remind our officials that acquiring the 8 acres immediately south of the Boulder Field is important. If you are a Hoover resident and have not done so already or would like to do so again, please contact our Mayor and City Council Members and encourage them to work with U.S. Steel to acquire the 8 acres immediately south of the Boulder Field so that the buffer around the Boulder Field is permanently protected and permanent dedicated parking and other amenities can be provided for Boulder Field users. See our prior posts for the names and emails of Hoover's Mayor and City Council.