The City of Natchez will be sprucing up its streets soon with flowering trees.

The Mississippi Forestry Commission gave the city a $14,897.50 grant to plant 246 trees throughout Natchez, said James Johnston, community development coordinator for the city. The grant is in cooperation with the Mississippi Department of Transportation.

&uot;With this transportation-enhancing tree-planting program it is the objective of the City of Natchez to plant tree to enhance the local transportation system,&uot; Johnston said. &uot;These enhancements will be accompanied through the planting of crape myrtles and dogwood trees to be used for aesthetic improvements, windbreaks, sight and sound barriers and as stream buffers.&uot;

Along George F. West Boulevard, 74 crape myrtles will be planted. Forty dogwoods will be planted on Duncan Avenue; 24 crape myrtles on Canal Street; 72 crape myrtles on Melrose-Montebello Parkway; and 36 crape myrtles on Brenham Avenue.

Sites for the trees were chosen based on transportation.

&uot;To some degree it was based on traffic patterns,&uot; Johnston said. &uot;We also wanted to give importance to the major thoroughfares.&uot;