LAURENS, IA (Northwestiowanow) – The City of Laurens is moving forward with major cleanup and restoration work on the Prairie Preservation Trail.

City Administrator Hillary Reed says the project has been in the works for years.

 

She says the effort follows an evaluation from the Iowa Forestry Division, which walked the trail last spring.

 

 

Cleanup is currently underway, with contractors cutting trees while city crews haul away debris.

Residents may have noticed the trail looks drastically different — especially with the loss of the familiar tree canopy. Reed says much of that canopy was made up of ash and mulberry trees that were part of a single monoculture, all dying at the same time. Officials say that while the canopy was well-loved, it was unhealthy, unsafe, and shading out the native prairie plants the trail was originally designed to protect.

Reed says that in the spring, the restoration phase will begin, adding noninvasive plants and trees.

 

 

Despite construction, the Prairie Preservation Trail will remain open, but Reed advises the public to use caution around posted work areas.

For more information, residents can call City Hall at 712-841-4526 or follow the City of Laurens on Facebook for updates.