FAIRHOPE, Ala. (WALA) – As the City of Fairhope gets ready for one of the biggest events of the year with its 4th of July celebration, the waterfront park at the pier has reopened just in time. The Working Waterfront project won’t be complete until September, but much of it has been finished in time for the big fireworks celebration.
Striping in the parking area was just finished Thursday morning, July 3, 2025 and after a couple of hours to dry, the circle was opened to traffic. Folks wasted no time checking out all the improvements. It had been a goal of the city to get this portion of the park open to the public by the holiday.
“The fountain is one thing that people will see when they come down. You’ll see that there’s a different lighting system in the fountain. There’s obviously a different pumping system,” Fairhope mayor, Sherry Sullivan said. “Knowing that the flag’s still where it is because when you come down the hill you see the flag and the fountain and that’s what people didn’t want to change. I think people are really going to like the pavers. They’re going to like the improvements on the pier if they haven’t been here, so there’s a lot of great things down here and again, it will only get better when we open the south end.”
Fairhope is expecting tens of thousands of spectators to attend their Independence Day celebration. It’s a long-standing family tradition for many and some began staking a claim to their spot on the bluff Thursday, which was also a great vantage point to see all the improvements made…