Gardendale is a city in Jefferson County, Alabama, United States[1] and a northern suburb of Birmingham.

Today, with more than 16,000 residents (estimated), the city of Gardendale has grown to include more than 400 businesses, 4 schools, and 24 churches.

Today, nearly 40 years later those same blue vapor lights still exist with some being replaced with the more modern bulbs near major intersections.

Since 1980, Gardendale has annexed considerable amounts of land on the north, east, and west sides.

The northern annexation has centered along US 31 and extends nearly 2 miles (3.2 km) farther north than 1980.

Gardendale is situated along one of the three major transportation corridors from the Midwest to the Gulf Coast (I-75, I-65, I-55).

This freeway is open from Coalburg Road near Fultondale just southwest of Gardendale to Memphis.

Gardendale is located at the southwestern end of one of the Appalachian ridgelines running from eastern Tennessee into northeast Alabama.

No major waterways are located in Gardendale but several streams feed into the Locust Fork of the Black Warrior River that passes north and west of the city.

Much of the land inside the city limits on the east and northeast sides of Gardendale is rocky and hilly with deep ravines.

The nearest passenger train service is by Amtrak at the Birmingham station 10 miles (16 km) south of Gardendale.

Commercial air travel is located at the nearby Birmingham-Shuttlesworth International Airport.

[citation needed] As of the 2020 United States census, there were 16,044 people, 5,551 households, and 3,790 families residing in the city.

Annual events include the Magnolia Festival which occurs each spring and is held around and near the Civic Center complex on Main Street.

Pesnell, Gilbert Jacks, James Yarbrough, Horace Parker, G. William Noble, Kenny Clemons, and Othell Phillips.

Gardendale has a new City Hall that opened in 2015 on Main Street near the Civic Center.

The previous city hall has been demolished and the property was sold to CVS for use as a pharmacy.

A new municipal justice complex including court, police department, and jail has been located within the former Food World building facing US 31 just north of the city center area.

Luman Harris Park is a girls softball facility located just off Pineywood Road in the southeast part of the city.

Mini Park, consisting of a playground for smaller children is located on Keith Circle, just north of Tarrant Road, four tenths of a mile east of US 31.

Memorial Park is located between Main Street and US 31 in the north central part of the city and honors those who have served in the US Armed Forces.

Past park facilities included two tennis courts and the old civic center which were located adjacent to city hall in the center of the city, two tennis courts located on Tarrant Road in the eastern edge of the city, a mini park located at the corner of Peterson Drive and Tarrant Road which contained an asphalt basketball court, and a softball field that was located behind the south end of Bragg Middle School.

Bragg Middle School was built later to handle the growing student population.

Also located on the north side of Gardendale is Snow Rogers Elementary School.

Other towns in the county have followed this route and so moved toward de facto racial segregation.

[13] In early 2018, the attempt to break away from the county schools was squashed by the 11th Circuit Court of Appeals.

[14] Judge Madeline Haikala awarded the NAACP money on the grounds that the city government did not act in good faith,[15] with the fine being almost $850,000.

Gardendale was once home to the Rogers Area Vocational School which has now been demolished to make way for soccer & baseball fields as well as student parking.

In 2019, UAB opened a free-standing emergency room with outpatient clinics and helipad access.

[18][19][20] Gardendale is served by several small health centers/clinics that are part of these larger healthcare systems.