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Landscaping Enhances Coyle Farmstead Walkers, runners and nature lovers who use the Pecan Grove Park trail in Rowlett might feel as if they are stepping back in time. The trail begins just outside the recently transplanted Coyle House and Farmstead, which has been landscaped to match its early 20th century architecture.
The six Coyle Farmstead structures and an ornamental fence had stood since 1918 on the southwest corner of Main Street and Kirby Road, in the path of the future President George Bush Turnpike (PGBT) Eastern Extension. The NTTA relocated the properties in February to the park just east of the Rowlett Community Centre.
As soon as contractors settled the structures into place, the landscaping began. Tony Lucido, landscape manager for the NTTA, said the look was designed to maintain the period feel – to make the house appear as if it had been there all along and the grounds had grown up around it. Baker said AUI, PBS&J and Smith Lawn and Tree helped carry out the vision.
Most important to giving it that character was plant material selection. Instead of going with an entirely native-Texas palate, which is the current trend, Baker said he chose plants that the homeowner would have selected at the time: yaupon holly, magnolia, liriope and nandina. Crews also planted about 35 trees and transplanted about a half-dozen others from the original site, including a fig tree that was symbolic for the Coyle family. The fig, which represents blessings and gifts in the Bible and Greek mythology, was placed in the same spot in relation to the house, on the west side of the entry drive.
The farmstead was moved to a city park, so the design had to comply with Rowlett ordinances related to tree mitigation, which meant working closely with the city’s urban forester.
In project met all Texas Historical Commission requirements, including maintaining the exact horizontal and vertical relationships of all the properties and the grounds. It also had to pass review by the Texas Department of Transportation’s lead historian. Coyle House will be maintainable by the city in perpetuity.
Baker said plant establishment will take about a year, and within three years the plants and trees should be doing what they do naturally, fruiting and flowering. Once the city has restored the structures, historical and interpretive signage for visitors will be added to the property.
The 9.9-mile Eastern Extension will connect the PGBT to (IH) 30 passing through the cities of Garland, Sachse and Rowlett, adding another link to a growing outer-loop around Dallas. The NTTA began construction in October 2008 and is expected to open the road to traffic in late 2011.
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