Bel Air town officials agreed Tuesday to create a pet memorial tree grove in a corner of Rockfield Park on the town's east side.
Acting on a proposal first brought to their attention last month, the Board of Town Commissioners voted unanimously Monday to approve a resolution establishing the grove near the Ewing Street ball fields.
The grove will consist of tree plantings with a small marker affixed to each tree, nothing more. Town officials made it clear there would be no pet burials, no scattering of ashes and no personal memorials.
When Planning Director Kevin Small first explained the concept to the commissioners at a January work session, Mayor Robert Reier, a dog owner, was immediately concerned that the proposal not be construed as a pet cemetery.
Small said the town had been approached by a few pet owners, who inquired if there was a place they could plant a tree or do something else in memory of a departed pet.
Small explained Monday that the Grove will be in an area where many residents of the neighborhood walk their pets. As the resolution states: "Rockfield Park is unique for such a commemoration area given its prolific use for walking pets and its access to residential neighborhoods."
In addition to the large number of pets walked through the area, Small noted the new grove will be near the park's pet waste station.
"This will not have any impact on the Ewing Street fields," he said.
Small said there will be an approved list of trees or shrubs that can be planted. Reier asked if this is being done in consultation with the town's very active Tree Committee, and Small replied in the affirmative.
"This is certainly following through with our sustainability initiatives," Reier said. "It should add to the ambience of Rockfield Park."
Small said the pet owner who wants a memorial tree will pay for the tree, the marker and a small fee for maintenance. He said the overall maintenance costs for the town should be nominal.
Commissioner Susan Burdette asked if the pet grove would be open only to town residents, and Small replied it wouldn't be restricted and that "anyone willing to donate a tree" will be welcome to participate.
The pet memorial grove concept is similar to the memorial grove the town created several years ago in a small section of Shamrock Park north of Lee Way, where people can have a tree planted in memory of someone who has passed away or erect a bench or sculpture in their honor.
The Shamrock memorial grove has a number of trees, but its focal point is a memorial sculpture and plantings donated by the family of Patrick John Walker, a young man who was stabbed to death in a 2006 downtown road rage incident.
Small said last month the town will be doing some work to spruce up the Shamrock memorial grove this spring and summer, including a slight expansion previously planned as a result of a land swap with a neighboring property owner that the town agreed to in 2013.