Mowing rogue: Edmontonians tackle tall grass as pandemic cuts city maintenance budget
Kory Siegers | CBC News | Posted: June 17, 2020 12:12 AM | Last Updated: June 17, 2020
About half the number of city workers keeping up with the yard work
Edmonton's parks and pathways are looking a little rough around the edges this summer, and that has some residents mowing rogue.
Normally about 1,600 city workers would be looking after litter cleanup, weed control and pathway maintenance. This summer, due to budget constraints, only about 800 workers are doing those jobs.
That means the city is being a little choosier about what gets maintained, what doesn't and how often.
Across Edmonton, residents have started lending a helping hand. Jeremy Wright, who lives in Beverly Heights, marched his mower down the road so his kids could get out and play ball.
"We have five kids," Wright said. "I figured I'd just cut a little bit of a spot for them to have a little bit of a mini ball diamond."
After noticing the long grass, he decided to mow John J. Olinyk Park late last week.
"I just thought, 'Oh, the grass is long and the kids need to play, so I'll just cut it quick'."
People will notice the biggest difference in sports fields and district parks — that's where the mowing frequency will be every 21 days, instead of the usual schedule of seven to 14 days.
Other areas will not be mowed at all. The city has posted an online map showing the areas that will be maintained, and the ones that won't, including places like Bill Miller Park in Old Strathcona and stormwater management facilities.
Teams tackle the turf
On Tuesday afternoon, a group of young soccer players and community members came together in Griesbach to get a field into playing shape.
"My kids love the game of soccer and we can't even enjoy it in our own community," said resident Jennifer Chahal. "The grass is so high, it's full of mosquitos, you can't even kick a ball when the grass and the dandelions are up to your knees."
Chahal decided to gather up members of her kids' soccer team and the community league so they could work together to get the grass cut.
"We're hoping now that the world is starting again and the economy is picking up that we're going to return to the normal of cutting the grass every seven days," Chahal told CBC News, "so that everyone can get out and enjoy the outside."
In an emailed statement to CBC News, spokesperson Zak Fairbrother says the city "is working to keep everyone safe, while doing so with less employees as we try to balance our fiscal reality with delivering our services."