Fairhope Sets Groundbreaking for Family-Focused Foundation Park on Historic Jeanes School Site

FAIRHOPE, Ala. — Families in south Fairhope will soon have a new place to play. The City of Fairhope will hold a groundbreaking for Foundation Park, a 1.6-acre neighborhood park designed for children and families, at 9 a.m. Friday, Oct. 23, at the corner of South Section Street and Twin Beech Road.

The park is a partnership between the city and the Fairhope/Point Clear Community Foundation, and Friday’s ceremony marks the move from planning and fundraising to construction.

A park built around children and families

According to a city news release, Foundation Park is intended as a place where children can play, families can spend time together and neighbors can enjoy the outdoors.

“Foundation Park is an investment in our children and families,” Fairhope Mayor Sherry Sullivan said in the release. “It will provide a welcoming place for children to play, families to spend time together and neighbors to connect. We are grateful for the partnership with the Fairhope/Point Clear Community Foundation and everyone who has helped make this project possible.”

Officials said the city will manage the park’s development. The foundation plans to provide additional financial support for future special projects, including a splash pad and other amenities.

Rebecca Byrne, president and CEO of the Community Foundation of South Alabama, said the groundbreaking is an important milestone.

“The Fairhope/Point Clear Community Foundation is excited to take this next step toward bringing Foundation Park to life in partnership with the City of Fairhope,” Byrne said. “Our community deserves spaces where children can play, neighbors can gather, and families can thrive. This park will serve the community for generations to come, creating a lasting place for connection, recreation and opportunity.”

How the project came together

Foundation Park was first announced in 2025 as a phased development. On July 29, 2025, the Fairhope/Point Clear Community Foundation and the city announced a proposed partnership to build a public park and splash pad aimed at serving youth and families, including those in underserved parts of the community.

Under the arrangement described at the time, the city would continue to own and maintain the property, while the foundation would raise money to pay for improvements. The plan outlined two phases:

• Phase one: A $100,000 contribution from the foundation for fencing, landscaping, utilities and signage to establish the park.
• Phase two: A fundraising campaign through which the foundation planned to provide $400,000 to the city to build out the park and splash pad.

At the Oct. 13, 2025, Fairhope City Council meeting, Byrne presented the city with a $50,000 check from the foundation, described at the time as the first contribution toward construction. Sullivan said then that the park would be a welcome addition to the city’s park system and to the south Fairhope community.

A site with history

The park is being built on part of the historic Anna T. Jeanes School property at Twin Beech Road and Section Street. The Jeanes School served African American children in Fairhope during the era of segregated schools.

The school takes its name from Anna T. Jeanes, a Philadelphia Quaker philanthropist who in 1907 endowed a fund to improve rural schools for Black children in the South. The Jeanes Fund became known especially for supporting “Jeanes teachers,” also called Jeanes supervisors, who traveled among rural Black schools to train teachers, improve instruction and strengthen ties between schools and their communities. Schools across the region carried her name.

In recent years, Fairhope residents and community groups have worked to preserve the Jeanes School building and its legacy. In 2023, the nonprofit Hope Community and local business owner Lorie Ward announced plans to give the building new life as an arts and cultural center with a teaching farm and kitchen.

Placing a family park on the same grounds extends that effort, turning part of a site long associated with education in south Fairhope into public green space for a new generation of children.

About the foundation

The Fairhope/Point Clear Community Foundation was founded in 2018 by local residents and is an affiliate of the Community Foundation of South Alabama. An advisory committee of community members recommends how the local fund’s money is used.

The Community Foundation of South Alabama, founded in 1976, serves an eight-county region and manages charitable funds, scholarships and grants for communities across the area. Affiliate foundations such as the Fairhope/Point Clear group allow residents to pool donations and direct them toward local priorities.

Gifts to the Foundation Park effort support construction of the park and splash pad as well as future improvements and community grants. Donations are tax-deductible and can be made through the foundation’s website, fairhopepointclearcommunityfoundation.org.

If you go

• What: Foundation Park groundbreaking ceremony
• When: 9 a.m. Friday, Oct. 23, 2026
• Where: South Section Street and Twin Beech Road, Fairhope
• Who: City of Fairhope and the Fairhope/Point Clear Community Foundation

A construction timeline and opening date for the park were not included in the city’s announcement. Residents can find updates on Fairhope parks and recreation projects on the city’s website, fairhopeal.gov.