Something beautiful is taking root in Montgomery! The Montgomery Botanical Gardens is starting construction on a brand-new pedestrian entrance designed to make this beloved green space even more welcoming and accessible for all. In this update from River Region Boom, find out what’s ahead for the Gardens and how this growing space continues to bloom with purpose and community spirit.
“I can’t find the Montgomery Botanical Gardens”! “I don’t see a sign for the gardens on Forest Avenue!”. Those have been repeated messages from potential visitors to our beautiful gardens. It is both sad and frustrating that there has been no sign to identify the location of the botanical gardens on Forest Avenue nor on the I-85 Interstate Exit at Mulberry Street. But one of those problems is about to be solved.
Ground has been broken, and construction has begun on the new Pedestrian Entrance to the Montgomery Botanical Gardens on Forest Avenue at the three-way intersection of Forest Avenue and Park Place. The impressive stone pillars on each side of the new entrance will support an arched sign designating Montgomery Botanical Gardens above them.
The stone-faced pillars will appear very similar to the exterior of the Gayle Planetarium to blend with the environment and appear to have been there historically. The pillars will support an arched sign identifying the entrance to the Montgomery Botanical Gardens, with gates that will be opened and closed on the same schedule as the existing vehicle gate. Mr. Joe Hall, owner and stonemason of Appalachian Stone Company, is the builder and artisan who is leading this very needed project for MBG.
Interestingly, Mr. Hall is a third-generation stone mason, and his grandfather was the stone mason who installed the attractive stone exterior of the Gayle Planetarium. Mr. Hall’s assistant, Mr. Wayne Pitchford, is a vital part of this work to create the new entrance.
Currently, the only entrance to the gardens is through the single-vehicle entrance, which is not as safe or accessible for pedestrians to use. This new Pedestrian Entrance will do more than provide support for the MBG sign, which is very important. But it will also provide a much more convenient, safe, and accessible entrance for visitors to the gardens.
Part of the Alabama Cooperative Extension Service (ACES)
