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Memorial trees making way for Des Moines park improvements

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March 8th, 2018 by Ric Hanson

DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) — Nearly 200 trees planted at Des Moines Water Works Park in memory of loved ones will be removed to make way for park improvements. Station KCCI reports that Water Works CEO Bill Stowe said Tuesday that improvements the community has long wanted can’t be made unless about 180 of the 1,100 memorial crabapple trees are removed. The utility says it’s not feasible for crabapple trees to be replanted.

Water Works is providing crabapple saplings to those who paid $100 for the original trees and plantings and is providing their trees’ original memorial tags. A memorial feature that will include the names of those donors will be part of the improvements. Stowe says, “We certainly regret the fact that people thought they’d have a tree planted here forever.”