As Baldwin Health expands its services, the city is taking steps to manage increased traffic near the hospital.

The Foley City Council approved a four-way stop at the intersection of North Alston Street and West Peachtree Avenue. Currently, only Alston Street traffic stops at the intersection.

Taylor Davis, Foley city engineer, said recent expansions at Baldwin Health have increased traffic in the area. The hospital completed a new main entrance and lobby earlier this year and opened a five-story patient tower in 2024.

“With the increased traffic now that the hospital is fully functional and the site distance concern there with this live oak tree on the northeast corner of this intersection, we received some requests from concerned citizens asking us to take a look at that,” Davis said.

He added that as medical services continue to grow, traffic is expected to rise further.

Mayor Ralph Hellmich said the city has been monitoring traffic flow and believes the change is necessary.

“It's been outstanding for a while, but with the increased traffic we felt it was important to do it now,” Hellmich said.

He also noted that the oak tree at the corner has been a local landmark for decades.

“That tree has been a large oak tree since I was a kid,” Hellmich said. “It was right on the corner when that was a dirt road. Now, this is something that’s needed at the site. It will also slow traffic down in that area.”

The city plans to place warning flags on the new stop signs to alert drivers to the change and the new requirement to stop on Peachtree Avenue.

“We'll do the signs with the flags on the four-way stop ahead and everything for a while. It will be a learning experience with the stop on Peachtree,” Hellmich said.