DETROIT (WWJ/AP) - A proposed garden for Detroit's Belle Isle by Dutch designer Piet Oudolf is starting to take shape.
Construction is set to begin Tuesday on a 2.5-acre garden that's expected to open in fall 2020 in front of the Nancy Brown Peace Carillon. Organizers say 18,000 plants being grown for the site have been ordered for a planned installation in September. Most of the plants have been ordered from Michigan growers.
The total project on the island park in the Detroit River is estimated to cost $4.2 million: $150,000 for design; $1.7 million to $2.2 million for garden installation and $2.0 million for the endowment to perpetually maintain the garden. A volunteer group called Oudolf Garden Detroit is raising money through a plant sale to help fund the garden.
Nearly 600 people have signed on as volunteers to help in some way with the garden’s installation.