Jason Testman had to think a second before he could remember what South Charleston's beautification project was going to look like.
Testman, a landscape architect for Terra Care, designed the plan a couple of years ago. Once he had his design in front of him, he remembered the project clearly.
"It's a buffer between MacCorkle Avenue and some of the industrial stuff behind it," Testman said.
That buffer, which will go from the South Charleston Waste Treatment Plant near the Patrick Street Bridge to the Dow overpass, is something that South Charleston Mayor Frank Mullens has been waiting to see for three years.
"It's been a long time," the mayor said.
The point of the buffer is to improve the appearance of the city. Right now, when people cross the Patrick Street Bridge, they're greeted with the industrial tanks, trucks and some lines of barbed wire fences. Mullens said that it doesn't look good to have that as one of the first things people see when they come visit.
"I think the appearance of your city really matters," he said.
To remove the view of the plant, the city will haul in dirt to create an elevated mound that will stretch along the 925 feet that the plan covers.
Trees, bushes and flowers will go on top of the mound and a new path will be created so bikers and pedestrians can get away from the road.
That means that the sidewalk will split once it comes to the green space. On one side, people will have a view of the road and the trees, on the other side, people will have a view of the waste treatment plant and the trees.
Drivers should only have a view of the trees.
Testman plans to put in 10 Sophora or crabapple trees, which already line MacCorkle in other areas, and 24 Norway Spruces.
"We know that they're very tolerant of urban conditions," Testman said.
To top it all off, the city will plant dwarf fountain grass, 90 miscanthus bushes, 175 daylilies and 48 burning bushes, which is a plant that has red flowers.
Mullens hopes to have the project, which is almost three years in waiting, done by late summer.
"The holdup has been getting this easement worked out with Union Carbide," Mullens said.
Now that the easement is finished, which allowed Mullens to get the land for free, Dow volunteered to do demolition, which will make room for the green space.
"The big cost is going to be putting the power under the ground," Mullens said. He wants the area to have light fixtures as well.
Once the city can get the power lines underground, it'll begin hauling dirt onto the road. Landscapers will begin planting trees and bushes and a new sign that says "Welcome to South Charleston" will be created.
Mullens doesn't have a hard cost yet, but he's expecting it to cost in the $50,000 range and the money will come out of the community development fund.
And while there's still a lot to be done, the mayor is ready for the project to be finished.
"You can ask my staff," he said. "They'll tell you that I'm not very patient."
Reach Daniel Desrochers at dan.desrochers@wvgazettemail.com, 304-348-4886 or on Twitter at @drdesrochers.