UPDATE 9:05 a.m.:
City crews have started to put up a chain link fence around the park. Nearby, protestors are starting to show up.
One woman told Fox 4 Community Correspondent Dominga Murray they own a condo in the area and they can no longer walk their dog at the park because of what they say is going to be a lack of shade.
Watch below to see crews put up the fencing:
UPDATE — Tuesday, Oct. 22:
Jaycee Park is officially closed until fall 2025.
Fox 4's Dominga Murray is at the park with the latest on the closure:
The renovations to the park has sparked major backlash for more than a year. People have raised concerns over the invasive Australian pines, the addition of a bar and food trucks. The design has been changed more than once.
Heated debates could be seen at Cape Coral City Council meetings, which even led to arrests.
People against the park renovations are expected to protest at Jaycee Park mid-Tuesday morning.
ORIGINAL STORY:
Jaycee Park will be closed to the public starting Tuesday, October 22 and will not reopen until 2025.
In September, we saw the first signs of change when the memorial benches, picnic tables, and grills were taken out. The plan is to take out the Australian Pine Trees and put in food trucks.
Watch below as Fox 4's Bella Line gets reactions from supporters of the 'Save Jaycee Park' movement:
"If they start to dismantle the trees, pull the trees out, you can't go back," said Anne Berchtold, a supporter of the Save Jaycee Park movement. "You can't go back and put the trees back. Once they start doing that, they've destroyed the park.”
The City of Cape Coral says this is due to planned major park renovations and improvements.
"Food trucks are not an improvement. A bar in a park is not an improvement. An amphitheater that backs up to million-dollar homes is not an improvement," said Kathy Lopez, a Save Jaycee Park supporter. "Everything they are doing is destroying this park.”
You can expect to see a construction fence, and site preparation at the park.
The city says construction will begin once the site is secured.
The park is expected to remain closed until the fall of 2025.
"Just because the park is closing and because they intend to close it on Tuesday, doesn't mean that we're giving up," said Berchtold. "I think that giving up is the last thing that we're going to do."
You can view a video of the future of Jaycee Park here.
