Empty lots owned by the city in the Davis Addition will soon begin bearing fruit.
Iola City Council members approved a proposal from Iolan Josh Hawley to plant as many as 150 fruit trees along the 400 block of West Campbell Street.
Much of the land was acquired by the city following the 2007 flood that destroyed dozens of homes in south Iola.
Because the property lies in the floodplain, the city is prohibited from using it as anything other than undeveloped green space or a parking lot.
Hawley has signed a garden lease agreement similar to what others have signed, with a twist. He wants to plant fruit trees.
Hawley plans to plant an assortment of apple, pear, plum, persimmon and chestnut trees, roughly 10 to 15 trees on each lot.
“It sounds to me like a win-win,” Councilwoman Nancy Ford said, noting it reduces the amount of green space the city has to mow, and it improves the environment.
Councilman Carl Slaugh wondered if Hawley could refrain from removing as many as eight existing shade trees on the property.
Hawley said he likely would not remove the shade trees for now, but as the young saplings grow, it may be necessary.
Hawley noted the larger trees lose branches frequently, and are in various stages of decay. Their removal would be outweighed by the shade provided one day from the fruit trees.
Approval was virtually unanimous at 7-0. Councilman Ron Ballard abstained because he owns a lawn-mowing business, and could be impacted by the decision.
MONDAY’S 80-minute meeting carried a number of actions by the council.
Members approved the purchase of a 2-megawatt Caterpillar diesel generator for $325,000 from High Plains Power Systems LLC, Topeka.
The unit will round out the project that was started a few years ago when the city purchased two other diesel Caterpillar generators from HPPC.
Despite their rating, the generators will produce about 1.8 megawatts of electricity, enough to bring Iola’s total generating capacity to 28.3 megawatts.
That number is significant because it allows Iola to be considered a full-fledged generating city without purchasing additional capacity from other communities.
