Parks Level of Service Reductions
Park Maintenance Service Level Reductions: There has been much discussion over the past several months regarding park service level reductions. The following is a description of the impacts these service level reductions will have. All City departments are being, and have already been, impacted by the budget deficit facing the City. Park maintenance is no exception. Just two weeks ago, the average number of acres maintained by each park maintenance worker was approximately 14 acres. This is consistent with the industry standard, which has been established by the National Recreation and Park Association. Through a combination of early retirements and personnel transfers to other non-General Fund departments, the number of park maintenance field personnel will be reduced by nine positions by July 1. The average number of acres maintained by each park maintenance worker will increase by approximately 60% - from 14 to 22.5 acres per worker. If more positions are lost, the number of acres maintained per position will continue to go up. Staff realized several months ago that we would have to selectively reduce service levels to match available resources. Maintaining public health and safety would remain a priority, followed by protecting the City’s investment in its park system.
The first step was to categorize parks into three different classifications – Level I, Level II and Level III. Staff then listed maintenance tasks, such as mowing, fertilizing, pruning, etc., and frequency of each task. Finally, every site the City is responsible to maintain was assigned to the appropriate service level category.
Level I sites would continue to receive current levels of service, such as weekly mowing and edging, fertilization/aeration two times per year, trash pick-up three times per week, and routine irrigation system inspections. Examples of sites may include the Civic Center complex, parks with ball fields (when in season), major entries into the City, and other high-profile areas.
Level II sites would receive acceptable levels of service, such as mowing every 7-12 days, trash pick-up 1-2 times per week, turf edging every other week, fertilization/aeration one time per year, reduced frequency of tree pruning, a higher tolerance for weeds, and a slower response time on irrigation repairs. Examples of sites would include neighborhood parks, ball fields when not in season, and less frequented parks. Turf irrigation would also need to be reduced, to slow the growth rate.
Level III sites would receive minimal levels of service, such as mowing every other week, trash pick-up once per week, turf edging monthly, hazard pruning only on trees, a higher level of weeds, and irrigation system repairs would be made when time and resources permit. Examples of sites would include natural areas such as the Tidewater Bikeway, and remote isolated areas.
Example photographs of the levels of service are included in this week's "The Week in Review" (TWIR). You can access the TWIR by clicking on the link on the right side of the page.
The first step was to categorize parks into three different classifications – Level I, Level II and Level III. Staff then listed maintenance tasks, such as mowing, fertilizing, pruning, etc., and frequency of each task. Finally, every site the City is responsible to maintain was assigned to the appropriate service level category.
Level I sites would continue to receive current levels of service, such as weekly mowing and edging, fertilization/aeration two times per year, trash pick-up three times per week, and routine irrigation system inspections. Examples of sites may include the Civic Center complex, parks with ball fields (when in season), major entries into the City, and other high-profile areas.
Level II sites would receive acceptable levels of service, such as mowing every 7-12 days, trash pick-up 1-2 times per week, turf edging every other week, fertilization/aeration one time per year, reduced frequency of tree pruning, a higher tolerance for weeds, and a slower response time on irrigation repairs. Examples of sites would include neighborhood parks, ball fields when not in season, and less frequented parks. Turf irrigation would also need to be reduced, to slow the growth rate.
Level III sites would receive minimal levels of service, such as mowing every other week, trash pick-up once per week, turf edging monthly, hazard pruning only on trees, a higher level of weeds, and irrigation system repairs would be made when time and resources permit. Examples of sites would include natural areas such as the Tidewater Bikeway, and remote isolated areas.
Example photographs of the levels of service are included in this week's "The Week in Review" (TWIR). You can access the TWIR by clicking on the link on the right side of the page.
Labels: Level of Service
posted by City Manager @ 5:29 AM
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