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The landscaping division of the Parks and
Recreation Department is responsible for developing and maintaining the
City’s fifty two parks, open spaces and public areas. Full-time employees
and seasonal employees who are hired for peak activity periods perform the
work of this group. The division has responsibility for assisting in
planning new park areas, developing active and passive public facilities in
appropriate areas, and implementing plans and budgets for care and
maintenance of these public areas.This account number (4100) was designated
prior to 2003 for the Parks division, which included both landscape
maintenance and turf management activities. For 2003, account number 4100 represents the expenditures for
landscape maintenance activities and account number 4400 represents the
expenditures for turf management.
Landscape Maintenance – includes shrub and flower planting, watering, gardening, pruning, landscaping in parks and public areas, and downtown beautification. Significant Issues for 2003 - A 3% general wage adjustment and merit increases for eligible employees is included in the Personal Services category. Additionally, Turf Management staff and functions moved from this division (001-4100) to a separate Turf Management division (001-4400) in 2003, which accounts for the reduction in Contractual Services, Commodities, and Capital Outlay expenditures for this division in 2003. |
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The forestry division of the Parks and
Recreation Department is responsible for the care and maintenance of all
trees growing in public parks and along street right-of-way within the City
of Lawrence. Responsibilities include removal of dead or dangerous trees,
tree pruning, and mapping trees scheduled for removal due to disease or
storm damage. Dutch elm disease has claimed many of the elm trees in the
City, so the continuous monitoring of existing elm trees is performed by
the division per city code, chapter 18.
Both the forestry and park divisions conduct reforestation through the planting of new trees in public areas and along right of ways. Replacement of diseased or damaged trees that must be removed falls under this responsibility. Other responsibilities of this division include maintenance of forestry equipment used in the division such as chain saws, aerial trucks, front-end loaders, and the operation of the wood recycling program, which includes firewood and wood chip processing. Significant Issues for 2003 - The increase in Personal Services for 2003 can be attributed to the 3% general wage adjustment and merit increases for eligible employees. |
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The City of Lawrence operates two
cemeteries, Oak Hill and Maple Grove, under the administration of the Parks
and Recreation Department. Operation of the cemeteries involves grounds
maintenance (including seeding, fertilizing, mowing, and trimming of shrubs
and trees), the opening and closing of graves for funerals, giving
assistance to the public in finding grave sites, and sales of grave lots.
This division also performs maintenance of equipment used in these tasks such as mowers, backhoes, and tractors and cooperates with other divisions to maintain parks near Oak Hill Cemetery. Significant Issues for 2003 - The increase in Personal Services for 2003 can be attributed to the 3% general wage adjustment and merit increases for eligible employees. Contractual Services increased due to building repairs (shingles and paint) of the shop and house. |
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The Turf Management division of the Parks and
Recreation Department is responsible for developing and maintaining the
City’s fifty two parks, open spaces and public areas. Full-time employees
and seasonal employees who are hired for peak activity periods perform the
work of this group. The division has responsibility for assisting in
planning new park areas, developing active and passive public facilities in
appropriate areas, and implementing plans and budgets for care and
maintenance of these public areas.
This account number (4400) was designated in 2001 for the
contractual services associated with enforcing the City's weed
ordinance. These services were
transferred to the Neighborhood Resources Department budget in 2002. For 2003, account number 4400 represents
the expenditures for turf management activities, previously part of account
number 4100.
Turf Maintenance – includes turf seeding, fertilizing, watering, mowing, trimming, herbicide application, and snow removal. Significant Issues for 2003 - A 3% general wage adjustment and merit increases for eligible employees is included in the Personal Services category. In the Capital Outlay category, increased funding for the vehicle replacement is included. As noted above, expenditures in this account for 2001 were for contractual services associated with enforcement of the Weed Control Ordinance, which is now a function within the Neighborhood Resources Department. The account was not used in 2002, but represents turf management expenditures for 2003. |
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This division is responsible for the maintenance of parks and recreation facilities. Areas of responsibilities include over fifty parks, five recreation centers, two indoor and outdoor aquatic centers, courts, restrooms, play equipment, shelters, etc.. Maintenance includes both preventive and emergency programs involving construction, plumbing, electrical, carpentry, and masonry skills. Examples of work performed include construction of comfort stations, installation and repair of water and sewer lines, maintenance of existing electrical services, forming and pouring of concrete slabs and sidewalks, installation and repair of playground equipment, and preventive maintenance on electrical motors and lighting equipment.This division is also responsible for the collection and disposal of trash within the park system. Significant Issues for 2003 - The increase in Personal Services for 2003 can be attributed to the 3% general wage adjustment and merit increases for eligible employees as well as increased costs for part-time staffing. Also included are costs to provide staffing for the YSI complex, which is a reimbursed expense from YSI. The additional position shown is a transfer to provide conformity to the Comprehensive Plan. |
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l Tree
Replacements in downtown planter
boxes l Implemented new street tree code. |
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l
Implemented along with Turf Management
pesticide use seminar and brochure. l Installed signage at pesticide free parks. |
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l Ice
storm clean up, January 2002.
l Mulch give away to homeowners. |
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l Continue
to provide homeowners with
Saturday Brush collections service. |
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l Better
customer relations with funeral
directors and their clients |
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l
Renovation of Turf Management building
(in house/off season). l Annual Native Grass burn. l Pesticide Usage Seminar. |
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l
Renovation of the McGew Nature Trail.
l Partnership agreement for Broken Arrow Park with the county. l Contractural agreement with Youth Sports Inc. for maintaining athletic fields |
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1. To continue implementation of One
Cent County-Wide Sales Tax Projects in an efficient
manner. 2. To evaluate contracting out future park maintenance in lieu of adding personnel and equipment to existing inventory. 3. To continue the efficient operation of all cost centers. 4. To maintain parks as a high priority per public input for the Parks and Recreation comprehensive plan. |
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1. To design a district based work
order system.
2. To continue a daily emergency response crew. 3. To expand tree removal service offerings. |
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1. To operate the two municipal
cemeteries in an efficient manner.
2. To maintain interior roadways and water systems. 3. To expand lot sales in Oak Hill Cemetery by opening new sections. |
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1. To continue implementation of One
Cent County-Wide Sales Tax Projects in an efficient
manner. 2. To evaluate contracting out future park maintenance in lieu of adding personnel and equipment to existing inventory. 3. To continue the efficient operation of all revenue cost centers. |
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1. To provide efficient maintenance
of Parks and Recreation facilities.
2. To develop multi-agency project teams to assist in the initial planning of proposed Parks and Recreation projects. 3. To operate and maintain new facilities as they come on line as a result of the sales tax vote. 4. To give our citizens a sense of pride regarding their parks. 5. Encourage citizen participation in maintaining our parks. |
