By Lauren Zeugner and Keith Knepp
InkFreeNews

MILFORD — The southeast corner of the Milford Public Library grounds will have a new, fresh look this week as the Naoma Beer Memorial Garden is receiving a complete overhaul. The original garden was designed and constructed in 1995.

The entire landscape has been enhanced in a two-day project that started Monday morning, according to Doug Hoerr.

Milford native Doug Hoerr, senior partner of Chicago-based landscape architectural firm Hoerr Schuadt, shared photographs of his firm’s plans to renovate the Naoma Beer Memorial Garden on the grounds of the Milford Library. InkFreeNews photo provided by Doug Hoerr.

A native of Milford, Hoerr is the senior partner of Chicago-based landscape architectural firm Hoerr Schaudt. He designed the original garden plan in 1995 in honor of his mother, who was a librarian at the library. He also saw it as a way to give back to the community.

The update includes replacing the old, weak shrubs with new plants, according to Julie Sajtar, an associate principal at Hoerr Schaudt. Sajtar was in Milford, overseeing the renovations as project manager, along with Mike Ciccarelli, a principal at Hoerr Schaudt. Additionally, ornamental trees nearing the end of lifespan are being replaced, ground planting is being reestablished with new perennials and ground covers in larger masses.

Sajtar and Ciccarelli were on-site to direct award-winning Mariani Landscape, a family-owned Lake Bluff, Ill., landscape design and construction firm.

“Mike will oversee the construction and implementation portion of this project while I manage the planting enhancements,” said Sajtar before the project got underway.

“We will adjust the plantings in the field to accomplish the best design vision, incorporating existing plant material that is still looking its best with new. While the Hoerr Schaudt team focuses on design vision, Mariani will execute impeccable construction installation.”

“Julie and Mike (were there) to represent my firm, as well as my cousins and dependents of Naoma and Theo Beer,” said Hoerr in an email. “This is a labor of love and pride for our grandmother and the hometown library that nurtured so many of us who were raised in Milford. I personally attended kindergarten in the basement of this library.”

According to Sajtar, Hoerr wanted to refresh the garden, as some plantings had died and others had become too big. Hoerr made a visit in January, which allowed him to see the bones of the garden, what had matured and what needed to be removed.

Hoerr then teamed with Mariani Landscaping to do the actual planting. Those watching the project saw a big transfer by the end of Monday with the work completed Tuesday. Sajtar said a team may come to Milford next week “to do some tweaking.”

“This is a great project to work on,” added Sajtar. Both she and Ciccarelli said a garden refresh was normal, as the garden evolves over the years and plantings mature.

Much of the existing plantings brought for the project were used. Anything left over was made available to the community to be put in their personal gardens.

Pictured is some of the new greenery that has been installed on the southeast corner of the Milford Public Library grounds in the Naoma Beer Memorial Garden. InkFreeNews photo by Keith Knepp.

Pictured from left are Robert Beers, Juan Alfaro and Clides Azvierre with Mariani Landscape, an Illinois landscape and design company contracted to do the work at the library. InkFreeNews photo by Lauren Zeugner.