Moore County is coming to the rescue of the crape myrtle trees on U.S. 1 in Southern Pines.

The board of commissioners voted unanimously Tuesday to hire a landscaping firm to remove the trees and transplant them on county properties.

One goal is to transplant up to 70 trees at Hillcrest Park in time for the Dixie Youth World Series, which begins Aug. 12. The Dixie Youth event is expected to attract about 5,000 visitors to the county.

“We need to be at least one mile ahead of them,” said Rich Smith, county property management director, in a presentation to the commissioners.

He was referring to the plans by the N.C. Department of Transportation (NCDOT)o begin removing the trees Aug. 15. NCDOT has hired a contractor to remove the trees to make way for installation of guard rails and reworking of the storm drainage system.

Other trees will be transplanted at the public safety complex now under construction and at the Moore County Office Park on Pinehurst Avenue, both in Carthage.

Smith said the county’s contractor, McCrimmon Landscaping & Grading Inc., of Southern Pines, has offered to donate about $50 per tree. The gift has an estimated value of $7,000.

The remainder of the cost would come from the public safety complex contingency fund ($7,500) and a transfer from the contingency line item in the general fund budget.

Smith said the county’s proposal has met with approval from both NCDOT and the town of Southern Pines.

Commissioner Tim Lea made the motion to proceed with the plan, with the understanding that NCDOT remains agreeable with the arrangements.

Smith credited Lea with coming up with the idea to transplant the trees from the U.S. 1 median to county grounds. He made the technical arrangements, with support from County Manager Cary McSwain, Assistant Manager Ken Larking, County Attorney Misty Leland and other county personnel.

For more details on the meeting, check the Friday edition edition of the The Pilot.