Mesquite Mile is a multifaceted collaborative public art project situated in our neighborhood in the city of Lubbock, TX and the surrounding region, which is the unceded and traditional territory of the Comanche and Mescalero Apache peoples. The project is a collaboration with Common Studio.

The project relocates Mesquite trees and other drought tolerant plants from agricultural land (where they are considered a nuisance) into the tree poor urban core of Lubbock where they can contribute to solar cooling, stormwater runoff mitigation, and the creation of pedestrian-friendly green spaces. The project reframes the Mesquite tree (a victim of ecological forgetting) as a cultural asset, and in doing so, amplifies a sense of place and challenges the idea of the South Plains as a region of nothingness. 

The mesquite tree is woven into the fabric of the South Plains of Texas—from its arrival in the company of mastodon and mammoths, the tree has sustained and enriched life on South Plains for millennia. As the region’s most significant water source—the Ogallala Aquifer—is depleted at an unsustainable rate, area residents now face many threats due to impending water scarcity. Although much maligned as a nuisance requiring chemical/mechanical removal, the mesquite tree is one of the area’s most drought-resistant plants—a symbol of resilience in the face of ecological trauma, it is also a touchstone for water conservation.

Since 2021, we have transformed over an acre of urban streetscape, converting private, water-intensive lawns into green infrastructure-based mesquite prairie. Transforming underutilized front yards into distinctive public artworks that provide shade and celebrate regional culture, our work creates nature-focused open spaces that increase biodiversity.