The City of Elkhorn Municipal Services and Utilities Committee approved a project Monday night to spruce up Elkhorn’s downtown area.
Alderman Tom Myrin first brought the project – which aims to install cement planters around the city’s downtown area – before the committee at its May 12 meeting. The project is expected to cost approximately $9,500 total, which covers the cost of 65 cement planters as well as plants.
With concerns raised at the May 12 meeting about the planters, Myrin said he and Chris Clapper, executive director of the Elkhorn Area Chamber of Commerce, met with City of Elkhorn Public Works Manager Martin Nuss to look at other options.
Myrin said they agreed on a different style of planters that will hold more soil and water, helping to keep plants watered on hot summer days.
In response to concerns about maintenance, Myrin said he and Clapper visited downtown businesses to gauge their interest in the project, which he said was overwhelmingly positive.
“The excitement the businesses have in doing a project like this is incredible,” he said.
Myrin said businesses are looking forward to the project and even on streets where there are only a few businesses, but numerous pedestals, those businesses said they would take care of as many of the planters as needed.
“The commitment I asked of them was first thing in the morning pick out any garbage, make it clean and on the super hot days, give it some extra water,” he said.
Myrin said even businesses who don’t have pedestals are interested in participating in the project and that he has located places they would be okay with having planters in front of their business.
“They’re very excited about being able to do this,” he said. “In fact, I have three separate businesses that have said, ‘show me a street where the businesses can’t take care of these, or won’t because of vacations, sick, whatever, and I will do it.’ They’re that dialed into this.”
As the planters still need to be ordered, the planters and plants likely won’t be put in place until next year.
According to Nuss, one of the things he looked into is securing the planters to the pedestals with a type of concrete glue, in which case the city would not need to store them during the winter and it would deter people from tipping the planters over. During the winter, the planters could then be used for Christmas decorations, being empty for only about three to four months out of the year.
Though the planters are around 130 pounds empty, Nuss suggested putting the planters out for a month to see if they would get knocked over or not before gluing them down to the pedestals.
“It can always be changed,” he said. “Give it a couple weeks, if it’s not a problem then fine, and if it is then glue them down, it can be done at any time.”
The committee voted unanimously in favor of ordering the planters this year with the intention of putting them out and planting flowers next year.
Im all for making downtown look nice but I hope History does not repeat itself. First were the flower beds, Lots of excitement and comittement as in the idea of planters but alas they evolved into trash collectors, weeds and a place for dogs to relieve themselves. Then came the brown planters. Nice at first but they too turned into ash trays and amusement for vandals. Before spending close too $10,000 on planters lets work with what is there! I hope Im wrong but in regards to these planters I fear History will repeat itself.