ANNUAL REPORT
2006-2007
PARKS AND GROUNDS DIVISION
The responsibilities of the Parks and Grounds Division of Public Works include the management and maintenance of all the parks and open space properties, the lawns and landscapes of all Town-owned buildings, as well as the grounds and sports fields at all of the Board of Educations facilities.
This fiscal year we saw many new and positive developments, both large and small.
A major change for the summer of 06 was the institution of a contracted trash service for all of our parks. For years the Town operated under a "pack in, pack it out" policy. As successful as that may have been, it do not seem to satisfy all park patrons. The Town Council accepted Parks and Grounds' proposal for the placement of trash and recycle containers throughout the Town parks.
Perhaps the brightest transformation of the year was the new addition to the Public Works Facility on Burgess Road in the fall of 2006. Parks and Grounds created a unique garden entry to further enhance the new building. The design is an eye-catching one, built upon a practical ecological concept known as a "Rain Garden.". Native plants accustomed to similar growing conditions surround a simulated stream bed which empties into an onsite drainage area. The plants and stream bed filter the runoff, "cleansing" it before it enters the waterway.
The fall and winter seasons were fairly mild ones, but nonetheless eventful ones. During and in between our leaf cleanup and the challenges of snow and ice, the Parks and Grounds Division were busy setting up shop in their new work areas and repairing/preparing their equipment for the warmer months ahead. Some more visible projects were our seasonal displays at our Town buildings and the redesign of the Priest Property sign on Sullivan Avenue. We also designed and build three large concrete planters for the front of the Town Garage.
Spring is always a busy time of year for Parks and Grounds. With 16 baseball fields to renovate, a dozen soccer fields to lay out and paint, three pools to uncover and clean, and over a hundred acres of turf to mow, we have little down time. In addition to these annual tasks, this year we redesigned the landscaped beds at the entrance to the Town Hall as well as the flagpole planting a Rotary Pavilion. Flag pole plants at the Community center, the Police Department and VMP also got new colors this spring.
As we rolled into the summer of 07 and the end of that fiscal year, we provided our assistance and expertise to help open the Boundless Playground. We also completed anticipated repairs and maintenance to the stone dust trails that meander through Nevers Park as well as the trails throughout the Major Michael Donnelly Land Preserve.
We were approached by an admiring Library staff to make for them four of our self-designed concrete planters to decorate the library's lower entrance.
Throughout the year, the public's frequent and varied interest in Town trees is directed toward the Tree Warden and the Deputy Tree Wardens. The care and control of every tree on any and all Town property falls to the Tree Warden and he utilized his many resources to satisfy the multitude of issues at hand.
Stephan Lavigueur
Parks and Grounds Manager
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