At its recent meeting, the Foley City Council approved a project aimed at enhancing Philomene Holmes Boulevard, with a focus on improving access to the Graham Creek Nature Preserve. The initiative involves paving a portion of the boulevard while retaining a section of the route within the park as a gravel road, bordered by concrete to prevent erosion.

Stretching from the park’s Interpretive Center to Roscoe Road, covering approximately 1.4 miles, Philomene Holmes Boulevard serves as a crucial access point to the Graham Creek Nature Preserve.

The project's timeline is estimated at six months for completion, though it remains subject to weather conditions and other variables.

Situated on Wolf Bay Drive, south of Baldwin County 12 South, the Graham Creek Nature Preserve spans approximately 660 acres, making it the largest municipal nature preserve in Alabama. Foley recently secured a $5 million grant through the federal Gulf of Mexico Energy Security Act (GOMESA) to further expand the preserve.

Offering a variety of recreational amenities, the preserve features a canoe/kayak launch, a 5-mile hiking trail, a 7.5-mile bicycling trail, a 3-mile cross-country trail, and a nine-basket disc golf course. Visitors can also enjoy picnicking, birdwatching, and observing rare carnivorous plants and wildflowers in the preserve's diverse habitats. The preserve operates daily from dawn to dusk.

Philomene Holmes Boulevard honors the legacy of Philomene Holmes, a respected Foley nurse. She and her husband, Dr. W.C. “Buddy” Holmes established Baldwin County's first hospital, the Sibley Holmes Memorial Hospital, in Foley from 1936 to 1958. Today, the hospital is recognized as the Holmes Medical Museum on East Laurel Avenue.