Landscape Architect Dave Sobina pitches a proposal for a healing garden layout at Crescent Park during Tuesday’s Street Landscape Committee meeting.

As progress continues on the improvements to Crescent Park, city staff and the city’s Street Landscape Committee are getting serious about the plantings that will fill the healing garden created as part of the project.

And they get the help of Dave Sobina, a landscape architect with Larson Karle Architects.

“I try to go with more everyday stuff that people don’t see a lot,” Sobina said of his plant selection philosophy.

One of the key elements of the healing garden is a series of statues by Dave Poulin, who died last year. They were designed to mirror several local school children.

Figuring out where each is best situated is part of the chore here.

Sobina recommended placing the boy with a fish statue next to a fountain proposed for the space. But rather than some grand fountain, he suggested it “should be more exemplary of what is common around here.” He suggested a couple designed for a pondless fountain that would replicate the sound of moving water,

The committee, Sobina and city staff talked through a series of possible plant species to be included.

Sobina acknowledged it will look “gumdroppy” at first as time will be needed for the selected plants to provide the full effect for the space.

He said he’d be willing to provide a more formal plan to the committee that the committee could then “mark up.”

The trees that are part of the design — kousa dogwood, eastern redbud and witchhazel — will be procured and planted this fall. The rest of the planting is likely to occur next year when the season is right for each specific plant.

“It’ll be a big push in the spring,” Sobina said.

Department of Public Works Director Mike Holtz said the project generally is “close” to completion with a couple weeks of trail work left. He said the light poles could be delivered in the next few weeks.

Sobina noted those are already past their projected 14 week delivery estimate.

He added that the trail from the bridge to the helipad is complete “but it’s soft. It will harden up. It just takes time and the right weather.”