After several years of planning, the beautification of the Epsom traffic circle is set to begin this month.

The circle, at the intersection of the Suncook Valley Highway and Dover Road, has long been thought of as the center of Epsom, with businesses springing up around it.

In 2007, the state officially renamed the circle The Officer Jeremy Charron and Officer Michael Briggs Traffic Circle after two local police officers who were killed while on duty. Briggs, a former Epsom police officer died while working for the Manchester Police Department in 2006. Charron, a young Epsom officer, was killed during a traffic stop in Epsom in 1997.

Unfortunately, the circle hasn’t really been the prettiest thing to look at.

Epsom resident Bob Mc- Kechnie has been working with area businesses, volunteers and landscapers on plans for the circle, and said they’ve come up with a plan that looks nice, will increase visibility through the circle and will be very easily maintained at no cost to the town.

“This is all being done on a volunteer basis,” said McKechnie. “We were kind of in stealth mode until we had all our ducks in a row.”

The Warner-based Pellettieri Associates, Inc., a landscaping, architecture and design company, created the conceptual design for the circle, which includes several different types of greenery and a flag pole.

The plan has been approved by state officials already, who have control of the circle, Mc- Kechnie said. The Board of Selectmen will be updated on the on the design and timeline for the improvements at their next meeting on Monday, Oct. 13.

Between Tuesday, Oct. 14, and Friday, Oct. 17, McKechnie said, the circle will be graded and a silt fence installed. The turf for the circle will also be delivered and laid down.

During the week of Oct. 20 to 24, the loaming and bed preparation will be completed. Planting will start on Monday, Oct. 27, according to McKechnie.

Millican Nurseries of Chichester is contributing the trees and other plantings for the project, and has also stepped up to maintain the circle.

Millican Vice President Ken Michael said the circle will feature the Heritage River birch, a quickly rooting tree with salmon- colored papery bark that can withstand more stress than a typical birch tree and is more resistant to pests.

“We decided to go with that tree because it’s more tolerant of the salt and stress that is going to be in that area,” Michael said. The circle will also contain grow-low sumac, another hardy plant that is pretty resistant to weeds and is fragrant.

The tallest trees in the circle will either be the oak or honey locust trees, but that has not been decided yet, Michael said.

The first step is to get the turf in before winter and set to work on the trees in the spring.

All of the vegetation is low maintenance, and Michael said Millican will be in charge of pruning the trees and bushes every two years or so.