DALLAS – Now that the Polk County Courthouse building has a completed facelift with updated exterior, the administration is finalizing plans to completely renew the landscaping on the main lawn.
In order to make room for the new, however, the community has to say goodbye to the two remaining large trees that have become problematic over the years.
“There used to be a sister tree to the really big tree in front of it that had to be felled because it nearly destroyed the harsh landscape,” said Matt Hawkins, director of Polk County Administrative Services. “The goal is to make it more community-friendly, organizations can have activities on the lawn. As it is, it is not always conducive to what they want to do. “
The new landscaping has been in the works for a few years, Hawkins said, adding that he has a certain amount of money left over from the building renovation project.
However, the original offer was sent back to the drawing board with an estimate of $ 550,000, Hawkins said.
“We thought that was a bit too much at the time. We’ll see, ”he said. “We pulled some things out, kept important things.”
For example, the original plan was to install a new Christmas tree, but was canceled as too costly. But the new plans still have a place for the community to gather around a temporary Christmas tree put up for the holidays, Hawkins explained.
He said that an arborist looking at the tree currently used for Christmas lighting ceremonies has roots that encroach on current hardscaping, and planting a new tree amid the new landscaping would eventually pose the same problem.
The new plans include removing the existing vegetation and adding new trees, shrubs, softscape and grass along with some new walkways. Hawkins said some sidewalks would need to be replaced anyway and it made more sense to wait for the new landscaping to surround them rather than replacing them twice.
Hawkins said the city of Dallas had already done a good job on Main Street widening the sidewalks. The district plans to expand it further. This allows for more activities and space to pitch tents like for vendors during Krazy Dayz.
Hawkins said he is working with three contractors – Laurus Landscaping Architecture, EarthTech and Dalke Construction – to put the final plans together, and the final deals should be completed this week. The demolition begins this week or next. He added that the goal of completion would be to hold it accountable due to drafts.
“We want to push ourselves out so Mother Nature can naturally take care of Soft Scape,” he said. “Well, I suspect it was done later in October.”
He recommends checking the county’s Facebook page and commissioners’ pages for updates.
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