City of Greeley officially begins converting part of Bittersweet Park back to Kentucky Bluegrass
The Weld County Veterans Memorial is seen at Bittersweet Park in Greeley on April 14, 2022. City council agreed to convert about 5.6 acres of the park near the Weld County Veterans and Fallen Officers memorials back to bluegrass after receiving complaints about the native grasses. Photo by Trevor Reid for The Greeley Tribune.
By Kelly Ragan
The City of Greeley has officially started converting part of Bittersweet Park back to traditional Kentucky Bluegrass, according to a news release.
The entire park had been converted to natural grass, but after some public outcry, city officials reached a compromise, replanting the bluegrass surrounding the Weld County Veterans and Fallen Officers memorials.
The renovation was previously expected to cost about $60,000 per acre, or about $336,000 with an additional $8,100 per year for ongoing maintenance.
The conversion process will include several rounds of mowing and herbicide to remove the existing native grass and weeds, according to a news release. Some weeds will receive additional spot treatment to ensure their removal.
Crews will then remove cut grasses that can’t be tilled into the soil. If needed, crews might do some ground and earthwork to change the drainage. After the earthwork, crews will prepare the soil and install bluegrass sod.
According to the release, during the renovation, residents will notice brown grasses and dirt around the Weld County Veterans Memorial at the corner of 16th Street and 35th Avenue to the spillway just north of the Fallen Officers memorial. Trees and spaces outside the conversion area will continue to be watered and maintained during the project.
City officials anticipate the conversion will be finished by October 2022, according to the release – weather permitting.
Though there has been push back on the appearance of the natural grass, there has also been significant support for the move toward natural grass.
The city held community input sessions the city held in partnership with the Communication and Engagement Department to get a better sense of what folks wanted for the area. In this process, the city:
Held two pop-up events at Bittersweet Park
Heard from 1,358 survey respondents
Received 4,000 write-in comments
Received 29 paper surveys
Collected 270 social media comments
Received more than 20 emails
The results showed that nearly 67% of respondents wanted to keep all or most of the natural grass. About 56% of the responses suggested landscape maintenance around memorials, park and picnic areas, and celebration areas.