Bluff Park mural becomes a reality

It took about four days, but Bluff Park artist Jayne Morgan and several volunteers completed the mural along Shades Crest Road welcoming people to Bluff Park in early March.

They painted the mural, which says “Bluff Park welcomes you,” on the side of the building that houses Mr. P’s Deli and Bluff Park Ice Cream Shoppe at 815 Shades Crest Road, right at the top of the hill that comes up from Homewood and Birmingham.

The building is actually in the city of Birmingham and includes a picture of a scenic view from Shades Mountain and a pair of angel wings that are a tribute to Carol Pilleteri (Mrs. P), who died in April 2018. The wings are surrounded by red roses, which were her favorite flower, and seven cardinals representing the seven grandchildren of Charles and Carol Pilleteri.

The mural was the idea of Bluff Park resident Brett Shaw, who saw a mural in Homewood and wanted to create something like this for his community. He and fellow Bluff Park resident Heather Skaggs formed a committee, and they raised more than $4,000 to pay for the mural, including a $1,500 contribution from the Hoover Arts Alliance.

The original idea was to allow a broad group of people to help paint the mural, but the committee decided to have only a few volunteers because of the COVID-19 pandemic. The committee hopes the Bluff Park mural will spur more murals in Hoover.