Reagan's Hill: Putting Roots Down at a National Monument

By Erik Skindrud, regional editor

Debbie Vachuda of rose grower Jackson Perkins directs Boy Scout Nick Dyer during a March 2005 rose garden installation. Assisting Dyer on his Eagle Scout project are Alex Na (left), Clinton Bowen (right) and scout master Tony Tosatto (back to camera). Photo Courtesy of Taryn Foster

Landscape Architect James Dean told LASN readers about his work at the Ronald W. Reagan Presidential Library & Museum in February's issue. The all-too-brief peek whetted our appetite to learn more about the important project, which continues to pose challenges for Dean and contractors with C & R Landscape Inc. of Oxnard, Calif.

James Dean, ASLA, (who goes by "Jim") was in the barber's chair when the call came. It was June 5, 2004 and Ronald Reagan had just passed away at the former president's home in Bel Air, Calif.

A peach-toned rose called "Honey Perfume" blooms in the library's rose garden. The garden is modeled on the White House rose garden and is 80 percent of its size. Photo by Erik Skindrud

It was Saturday.

"The library called me an hour and a half after he died," Dean recalled recently. "I never thought they would call that quickly when it happened, but they asked me to do whatever it took to make the place beautiful."

Dean started work on Sunday. Workers spent the next five days planting flowers, replacing a cracked and buckled hardscape and attending to a hundreds of other details before the world's gaze?EUR??,,????'??+and dozens of dignitaries?EUR??,,????'??+settled on the hilltop.

Crew leader Ernesto Madrigal of Oxnard, Calif.-based C & R Landscape Inc. stands with Landscape Architect James Dean (left) in front of President Ronald Reagan's interment site. Red, white and blue begonias, dianthus and petunias complete the patriotic theme. Photo by Erik Skindrud

Dean was supervising, but other eyes kept him and the workers under constant surveillance. It was the Secret Service's Presidential Protection Detail.

"They were watching every phase of the digging and planting," Dean said. "They were all over for days to ensure the security of the site."

Crabapple trees bloom in May at the Reagan library. The trees are laid out on a 20 x 20-foot grid that has been dubbed Gipper's Grove. Photo by Erik Skindrud

Hilltop Challenges

During the period from the library's 1991 opening to 2003, many horticultural problems arose at the site leaving plantings with a ragged appearance. Most of the issues related to severe bedrock conditions that resulted in dying plants suffering from poor drainage, dwarfed trees that had not grown beyond their planted size and discolored turf.

Sturdy posts hold a pair of steel cables designed to deter and prevent vehicle attacks at the library & museum. Additional bollards along the road prevent unauthorized access to the National Archives and Records Administration site. Photo by Erik Skindrud

In addition to poor drainage, site geology conspired to create unsuitable alkaline conditions.

"Here we have high-lime soil," Dean explained, pointing to some suffering shrubs along the main entrance. "When you're trying to put together a plant grouping effect you need a variety of plants, and they all don't respond in the same way to the soil conditions or drainage.

Circular walkways recall the circles and ellipses at the White House and other Washington, D.C. locations. The Simi Valley, Calif. site is essentially a hilltop scraped flat. Limited topsoil has been a challenge for contractor C & R Landscape Inc. of Oxnard. Photo Courtesy of the Ronald Reagan Presidential Library & Museum

"Here we have high pH?EUR??,,????'??+it puts iron out of range for certain plants. So we put down iron chelate, which lets plants utilize the iron."

In the adjacent parking lot, native sycamores are stunted, perhaps half the size they would normally be after a decade of growth. The ultimate responsibility may lie with a corner-cutting contractor, Dean said. Creating an environment where shrubs and flowers?EUR??,,????'??+let alone trees?EUR??,,????'??+would have required a much more massive importation of topsoil.

"What they did was come in and jackhammer a hole, plant the tree and get paid," he said.

A view of the pavilion that houses the former Air Force One used by President Reagan. The library's rose garden is now planted where the white tents sit to the left of this image. Photo Courtesy of the Ronald Reagan Presidential Library & Museum

Work Goes On

Since 2002, landscape architect Dean has contributed hundreds of hours pro bono to design work at the library and museum. He became involved in 2001, however, working with Peck and Peck, the project architects from Virginia. At that time Dean prepared the landscape development plans for the Presidential Learning Center which was a fee-based project for the firm. The task was completed along with California Civil Design Group of Westlake Village, Calif. by 2003.

"This is truly a people's space?EUR??,,????'???The thrill to me is being involved?EUR??,,????'??+and seeing other people involved with the site."?EUR??,,????'??+James Dean, ASLA

The decision to volunteer was based on the facility's non-profit status and cultural importance. The library has relied on multiple corporate and individual donors and volunteers, from rose grower Jackson Perkins and turfgrass supplier Southland Sod to a local Boy Scout Troop (which planted the roses).

The Boeing 707 that served as Air Force One for 28 years arrived at its new home in Sept. 2004. The expansive window faces north towards undeveloped Simi Valley hillsides. Photo by Erik Skindrud

"I'm doing this for personal satisfaction," Dean said recently.

He was pausing by the former president's tomb, dozens of visitors standing quietly around the solemn spot. Several minutes before he had hopped the railing into the tomb area itself to adjust a spotlight?EUR??,,????'??+drawing looks from the silent crowd.

"This is truly a people's space," the landscape architect said. "When I'm here they don't know who I am, and it's an invaluable opportunity?EUR??,,????'??+to see people enjoying the space and reacting to the design. The thrill is making spaces people enjoy spending time in. The thrill to me is being involved?EUR??,,????'??+and seeing other people involved with the site."

Nancy Reagan joined President Bush and wife Laura at the dedication of the library's Air Force One exhibit in 2005. Photo Courtesy of the Ronald Reagan Presidential Library & Museum

The overall landscape lacked continuity. It did not have a cohesive concept. The memorial site was, in our opinion, a timid response to this great man. It lacked the grandeur befitting a great world leader.

Mr. Blackwood asked for my opinion. My response was that any concept for the memorial site or related areas should follow a "hundred year plan". I also suggested that the Memorial Site be enlarged and extended further out into the garden to create a marriage with the surroundings. Since this site would become a National Monument upon the passing of the President, we felt the grounds might pick up the design flavor of the Olmstead Plan of the White House. Also, I felt that some of the tree selections present at the White House could be used as a subtle additional connection to his tenor as President of the United States.

Mr. Blackwood also showed me two small, groves of Crabapple trees (48 total). The two sites were named "Gripper's Grove". Each tree had been donated as a part of a fund raiser. The trees were poorly organized, poorly planted at random vertical elevations making them impossible to irrigate and maintain.

Planting of the Presidential Rose Garden was performed the Boy Scouts with Nick Dyer heading up the work as an Eagle Scout project. We offer many thanks to Jan Dyer. Senior Project Manager of our staff, who coordinated all phases of this project including the Boy Scout efforts.

Fragrant wisteria shades this walk from the library's parking lot to the library's burial place. Landscape architect Dean was supervised by Secret Service agents as he installed this hardscape days before President Reagan's funeral brought President Bush and dozens of VIPs to the site. Photo by Erik Skindrud

Thanks are also due to Jackson and Perkins who donated the roses, and Debbie Vachuda with Jackson and Perkins who supervised the scouts in their proper installation.

The landscape development for the library is a work in progress as funds become available. As the site continues towards its status of a National Monument, a new vision of the library is evolving. The next design project is to complete of a formal vehicular entry at the terminus of Presidential Drive.

As a part of that project a new parking lot is planned on the ridge of an adjacent hill top.

Former President Reagan died on Saturday, June 4, 2004. Landscape Architect Jim Dean started work (for the next week's memorial service) on Sunday.

James Dean, ASLA, graduated from Cal Poly Pomona in 1965 and has completed many projects in the San Fernando Valley and Southern California, including the city of Thousand Oaks' civic center. He teaches at Cal State Northridge and UCLA. Dean works with Jeff Eith and Jan Dyer, who are pursuing Landscape Architecture degrees and licensure.