The Salina Parks and Recreation Department announced plans to begin renovations on the South 9th Street median landscaping in the coming weeks, focusing initially on the end cap sections of the medians.
During the recent Parks and Recreation Advisory Board meeting, Parks and Recreation Director Jeff Hammond provided details about the project, which aims to refresh the 20-25 year old median landscaping along South 9th Street.
"Dennis's team and his landscaping team identified it many years ago or two years ago as a potential renovation to refresh it," Hammond said during the meeting.
The project will stretch from Otto Avenue south to Schilling Road, including the area with the sculpture south of Schilling.
Phase one of the project will focus specifically on the end caps of the landscaping sections, which Hammond described as "the most visible areas." The middle portions of the median, which primarily consist of grass and trees, will not be addressed in this initial phase.
Key changes to the landscaping will include replacing the current mulch with decorative rock and ensuring proper functionality of the irrigation system. Hammond indicated this modernization approach would update the appearance of this prominent Salina thoroughfare.
The Parks and Recreation Department is responsible for maintaining medians and islands throughout the city, and this project represents part of their ongoing efforts to update aging landscaping features.
Work on the first phase is scheduled to begin this fall, with completion expected before winter.
