Old Photos a Partial Cure for Landscape Amnesia

sd_timepiece400By Les Conklin

People tend not to notice the cumulative impact of small changes that are made over a long period of time. An entire community can develop landscape amnesia.

In 1995, Friends of the Scenic Drive reinstalled the plant identification signs along the Desert Foothills Scenic Drive, located on the northern reaches of Scottsdale Road. Thankfully, volunteer Bob Hart took photographs of many of the plant exhibits, had the film developed, and gave me a set of prints. We’re lucky he did because they are a partial cure for landscape amnesia.  The good news is that the Scenic Drive did its job of protecting roadside vegetation. In fact, in the near future the City of Scottsdale will begin using Bond 2000 funds to further strengthen the vegetative line.

All of the plant exhibits are along Scottsdale Road. Look at the desert in the background? What do you see? View Photos

 

 

 

Author: Les Conklin

Les Conklin is a resident of north Scottsdale He founded Friends of the Scenic Drive, the Monte de Paz HOA and is the president of the Greater Pinnacle Peak Association. He was named to Scottsdale's History Maker Hall of Fame in 2014. Les is a past editor of A Peek at the Peak and the author of Images of America: Pinnacle Peak. He served on the Scottsdale's Pride Commission, McDowell Sonoran Preserve Commission, the boards of several local nonprofits and was a founding organizer of the city's Adopt-A-Road Program.. Les is a volunteer guide at the Musical Instrument Museum.

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