Grass Cutting Budget to be Cut Dramatically by City Council

[loralei]

All- I just had this forwarded to me by a friend.

I just heard that the Detroit City Council is cutting the General Services Deparment's budget by over $9,000,000. If this happens they will have to lay off all their spring/summer grass cutters and people who pick up trash in the parks. IF they have to lay off all these people they will have to close over 100 parks [[they will have only a few full time staff left). I asked what "closed" meant and I was told they will have no one to cut the grass or pick up the trash! They will also have to target for closure some of the larger harder to maintain parks including Rouge Park, Palmer Park, Farwell. I was told that a final decision has not been made on which parks - but I don't think we can afford to not mow any parks. We have to keep our City looking clean and high grass and weeds is not clean. Apparently they also have to cut the money out of their budget for mowing vacant lots - meaning no vacant lots will get mowed startig in July!


Additionally they would have to lay off over 40 mechanics [[out of 90 mechanics) who repair city wide vehicles including Fire, Police, DPW trucks and other equipment, which will result in slower services to the citizens and response times. I think we all realize the City is in tough financial straights - but to cut money that is a core service seems unbelieavable to me. If the vacant lots aren't cut and the parks aren't cut it is going to look terrible around here and just invite criminal activity.

Call City Council members ask them to reconsider this cut. Also attend the public hearing at 10 am on Tuesday May 25th in City Council Chambers and/or the evening session starting at 7 pm at Mt. Zion Baptist Church at VanDyke and Mack on Tuesday as well. Your voice can and needs to be heard at these meetings. Or call [[see below) Thank you everyone!

Charlies Pugh, 224-4510
Gary Brown, 224-2450
Sauntelle Jenkins, 224-4248
Ken Cockrel, 224-4505
Brenda Jones, 224-1245
Andre Spivey, 224-4841
James Tate, 224-1027
Kwame Kenyatta, 224-1198
Joann Watson, 224-4535

[jcole]

What are the alternatives that they should cut instead? Police, fire, garbage pickup? Or raise taxes to cover the cost?

[Retroit]

At this point, grass cutting is a luxury. When Detroit closes off large areas of the city [[as recently proposed by Bing), I doubt if they will be mowing the grass in those areas. So why not start now? We can call them "grasslands", or "marshlands", or "nature/wildlife refuges", etc.

If people in Detroit really want the grass cut, maybe they can volunteer their time to do it themselves. It would be a lot cheaper than paying someone.

[loralei]

Retroit, I understand your point of view, however, there's alot more to it than simply letting lots go back to nature. There are definite safety issues involved when grasses grow upwards of 4 feet, which, given the recent weather may happen sooner than we expect. Additionally, there's lots of trash in the city and I would venture to guess that most of it will end up in those lots that are not being cut. Long lots are a great place to hide all manner of things, including people out to do no good.
There's also a traffic safety issue. Have you ever tried pulling out of an intersection when the lots are so high you cannot see oncoming traffic? Not fun.
I know grass cutting seems a luxury, but it is something that needs to be done for the safety of the residents.
Regarding the parks, I'm ok if we close some, but I am sure there are families in the city that use the parks they are considering closing. Even if they remain open there will be no one to pick up the trash. That's a health and safety issue too.
We already have limited recreational resource and more than enough children playing in the streets. With lots growing too high and parks closed we will have even more. This is a safety issue and a quality of life issue.

[kraig]

The City used to contract a lot of the grass cutting to some non-profits. The cost was a whole lot lower and the cuts were a lot more frequent. Once the General Services Department start bidding the contracts out, the contracts went to some of Kwame's backers, the costs skyrocketed and the cuts shrank down to one or two cuts a year.

If grass is only going to get cut twice a year. The City might as well spend the money on something else. The City should go back to using the non-profits. They can save money and get better service.

[loralei]

Anybody know where we can get some free livestock? Perhaps we can turn them loose to roam the city and take care of the grass.

[Chub]

Good idea, but I'm sure the livestock would be killed in no time. People who are desperate, do desperate things.

[ct_alum]

Let Kwame do it as part of his restitution - He used to brag about how he got the grass cut, didn't he?

[wanderinglady]

Anybody know where we can get some free livestock? Perhaps we can turn them loose to roam the city and take care of the grass.

They did it in LA. Maybe we can get some goatherds with shotguns [[are they exempt from the city gun permit laws?) to protect the livestock.

http://articles.latimes.com/2008/sep/09/local/me-goats9

[wanderinglady]

Please note that the above statement was made tongue in cheek!

[gnome]

Wasn't there a guy in the paper last year who will bring his goat herd to your weed choked lot for a price? I see nothing wrong with that. Raise goats, cut grass, win win

[Det_ard]

With an unemployment rate in the city proper of between 30% and 50% depending on how you measure it, there isn't any good reason why some of those without jobs couldn't be tasked with taking care of some of the things that the city no longer can afford to do. [[Ignoring inevitable complaints from the unions, the victimocracy and the lazy).

[Jimaz]

I'm no horticulturist but is there some species that could be planted that would crowd out the grass and wouldn't grow as tall?

[EastSider]

Regarding the parks, I'm ok if we close some, but I am sure there are families in the city that use the parks they are considering closing. Even if they remain open there will be no one to pick up the trash.

Hmmm. I know this may sound so totally stupid, but what if the families who use the parks were, like, the ones who picked up the trash?

[gazhekwe]

I was just at Scotty's for dinner this evening, and the cashier lady was talking about the neighbors coming out to clean up Brightmoor. It seems a month or so ago, they cleaned 300 bags of trash out of a park, and the city came by with garbage trucks and picked it all up the same day. The neighbor group has been keeping it clean ever since. You go, Brightmoor! Show the rest of the neighborhoods how to manage that so important park.

[lilpup]

get those who need community service hours out there to pick trash and mow, or prison release crews, or community volunteer groups

The parks aren't gonna mean anything if the City has to sell them off a la Kwame to make budget

tho' I wouldn't be surprised if Kwame pocketed something off of those sales...