As improvements to Memorial Stadium move to the grounds, Selma Mayor George Evans said he hopes to take measures to protect the city’s investment.

Sod and landscaping work are planned for the area in front of the stadium, and at Tuesday’s Selma City Council meeting Evans said he does not want to see the work ruined.

To protect the landscaping project, Evans said poles with chains going through them will be placed to keep people off the grass. Eventually, he said, they will also place a gate to protect the area when there are no events taking place.

“We’ve had a real problem with vehicles that come to games where they come there and create a new parking area in the grass out front,” he said.

“We want to put chains up there and a gate so that people won’t be able to just come through there, especially at night when the stadium is not in use.”

The work will be performed by Copeland Welding and will cost about $3,400.

Selma Parks and Recreation director Elton Reece said the problem grows during the fall.

“We have curbing all the way around the front of the stadium and a lot of times, especially during football season, coaches and referees will jump the curb and park all over the place. We only have about 10 parking spaces there, so people park all over the grass.”

If this trend continued in 2011, Reece said all of the landscaping work would be ruined. The plan, he said, is to keep vehicles in the designated parking area.

“We just want to get people to park where they are supposed to park,” he said. “The mayor was planning to do some sod and landscaping. He just decided to go ahead and do the other 1 percent and put the chains up to keep people out of that area.”