2023 Parks Department Annual Report

CITY OF O’FALLON, MISSOURI

PARKS DEPARTMENT

Bill Mitchison – Parks Director

CITY OF O’FALLON

100 NORTH MAIN STEET O’FALLON, MO 63366

INTRODUCTION

To enrich the quality of life through People, Parks and Recreation and remain one of the premier parks and recreation destinations within the greater St. Louis area and the

The O’Fallon Parks Department is composed of three divisions that work together to provide vital services to O’Fallon’s residents and businesses.

Landscape Division

Parks Division

Facilities Maintenance

314.581.3147

636.379.5610

636.379.5568

The Landscape Division is responsible for the year-round appearance of key properties within the City. This Division designs, plants, and maintains the floral beds, container plantings, flowering shrubs, trees, lawns, interior plants, and all other horticultural highlights at municipal parks and grounds, highway overpasses, and some right-of-ways. Landscape staff also produces plants in the City’s greenhouse and operates a small nursery.

The Landscape Division handles Tree City USA recognition status and the Commemorative Tree & Bench Program. Community education is provided by Landscape staff members through numerous telephone and e-mail inquiries throughout the year.

The Parks Division is responsible for the year-round appearance seven days a week of eight park properties within the City. This Division maintains athletic fields, recreational courts, CarShield Field, playgrounds, Lake Whetsel, trails, and other park amenities.

The Park Division handles construction projects that take place in the Parks with its Special Projects team. They install many of the park amenities such as playgrounds, recreational courts, pavilions, custom fabrication, and concrete work.

The Park Division also supports the Tourism and Festivals Division by providing support for all setup/removal and maintenance of park grounds during Special Events, such as food truck events, Celebration of Lights, Jammin’ Concerts, Tree Lighting Ceremony, Heritage & Freedom Fest, just to name a few.

The Facilities Maintenance Division encompasses a range of tasks aimed at ensuring the smooth operation and upkeep of buildings, equipment, and systems within a facility. These services typically include routine inspections, repairs, and replacements of essential components such as HVAC systems, plumbing, electrical systems, structural elements, and janitorial services. Additionally, Facilities Maintenance also supports the Tourism and Festivals Division by providing support for all setup/removal and maintenance.

ORGANIZATION BY DEPARTMENT

Landscape Division

Landscape Superintendent

Landscape Supervisor

Horticulture Specialist (3)

Maintenance Worker I (2)

Parks Division

Parks Superintendent

Construction Supervisor

Parks Maintenance Supervisor (2)

Construction Crew Leader

Park Maintenance Crew Leader (6)

Construction Worker I (3)

Maintenance Worker I (11)

Small Engine Technician

Office Manager

Administrative & Budget Coordinator

Facilities Maintenance

Maintenance Manager

Facilities Maintenance Supervisor (2)

Facilities Maintenance Worker II (7)

Facilities Maintenance Worker I (14)

Custodian II (7)

Custodian I

PARKS & RECREATION ADVISORY BOARD

The Parks and Recreation Advisory Board consists of eight members appointed by the Mayor with City Council approval. This Board is intended primarily to offer to the Mayor and City Council both a user's special focus and a citizen's perspective to augment City staff expertise on matters dealing with parks and recreation activities as the Mayor and Council allocate funds and set City priorities.

Committee Members

Bobby

(Left to right) Jim Elder, Kathy Wilson, Scott Hester, Nicole Snyder, Theresa Williams, and Bobby Ridings

Not pictured: Amanda Paul

Councilmember Lisa Thompson and Ron Epps (liaison)

Scott Hester, President (ward 2)

Amanda Paul, Vice President (ward 3)

Kathy Wilson (ward 1)

Jim Elder (at large/ward 2)

Nicole Snyder (at large/ward 4)

Theresa Williams (at large/ward 4)

Ridings (ward 5)

LANDSCAPE DIVISION

Scope of Responsibility

The Landscape Division is responsible for the year-round appearance of key properties within the City. This Division designs, plants, and maintains the floral beds, container plantings, flowering shrubs, trees, lawns, interior plants, and all other horticultural highlights at municipal parks and grounds, highway overpasses, and some right-of-ways. Landscape staff also produces plants in the City’s greenhouse and operates a small nursery.

The Landscape Division handles Tree City USA recognition status and the Commemorative Tree & Bench Program. Community education is provided by Landscape staff members through numerous telephone and e-mail inquiries throughout the year.

Organizational Chart

The Landscape Division adds eleven seasonal employees as spring and summer arrive. Seasonal staff works alongside full-time staff for mowing, landscape bed maintenance, and watering.

Morning flowers a Civic Park

Performance Measures in 2023

Below is the Landscape Division performance measures chart. The performance measures chart is updated annually for the budget book using the original categories to maintain consistent measures, but there are other responsibilities at play in addition to the five categories as outlined below in the chart.

Some Performance Measures for 2023 in the chart below are higher than anticipated. For example, the number of Perennials Planted for 2023 is nearly double the anticipated number of plants. We continue to add perennial plants to the Renaud Center, O’Day Park, and the Krekel Center. The number of Shrubs Planted is higher than expected as we were able to source smaller, less expensive shrubs and we added shrubs to Fort Zumwalt Park, O’Day Park, and revitalized the front of the O’Fallon Senior Center all within budget. The number of moss baskets for 2024 is reduced due to the Main Street reconstruction project where the light poles have been removed for the project.

Civic Park Knot Garden

Service Descriptions

Landscape Mowing

The Landscape Division has a dedicated mowing team to mow landscape lawns throughout the city on a weekly basis. The landscape lawns are at City Hall & Senior Center, CarShield Stadium, Renaud Center, Justice Center, K & DD clip sites, Veterans Memorial Walk, and some various small assignments The landscape mowing team makes thirty-six mowings per year beginning in the month of March through early December. The months of November and December also involve extensive leaf cleanup on the mowed properties. The weekly mowing involves thirty-five acres per week of mowing straight lines, checkerboard patterns, string trimming, and litter picks. By the end of the season, the mowing team will have mowed and detailed 1,260 acres of landscape lawns, equaling nearly two square miles of continuous mowing. In 2023, the Landscape Mowing Team used just over two miles of string trimmer line; fifteen feet at a time.

The Landscape Division provides support for O’Fallon’s Code Enforcement Team. When Code Enforcement secures a warrant, the Landscape mowing team arrives at the address to mow, trim, and clean up the property to bring the property up to the standard of the surrounding area. These remediation assignments are mainly through the growing season but occasionally there are assignments in winter months to correct tree problems

Decorative mowing at the K CLIP Site.

Right-of-Way Mowing

The Landscape Division also has a mowing team dedicated to mowing various city properties and designated right-of-ways. The three-man right-of-way mowing team makes 102 stops on a two-week rotation. The list includes Water and Sewer properties such as the clean water and wastewater treatment plants, water towers, wells, and lift stations. The rotation list also includes street department facilities, environmental services headquarters, highway overpasses such as K & I-70, Woodlawn, and Sonderen, lengthy stretches of arterial roadways such as Bryan, Mexico, and Feise roads, and various small stretches through O’Fallon’s roadways. By the end of the eight-month season, the right-of-way mowing team will have mowed 900 acres and 462 miles of roadside grass areas throughout O'Fallon, burning 1,238 gallons of gasoline or about 2.5 years of fill-ups for the family car.

Greenhouse Operation and Annual Flower Production

The Landscape Division staff produces 16,000 annual flowers in the greenhouse for spring planting. These annual flowers provide colorful flower displays through the summer at City Hall and the 911 Memorial, CarShield Stadium, Renaud Center, Justice Center, K and DD clip sites, Veterans Memorial Walk, Civic Park, and in the planters on Legacy Point, and for the hanging baskets on Main Street. In 2023, the landscape staff began to propagate new landscape plants using

existing plants in the landscape as mother stock. We were modestly successful with the propagation program so we will be expanding our effort in 2024 to make our budget go further.

Annual flower crop in mid-April, ready to transplant into flower beds of O’Fallon.

Trees

The Landscape Division staff cares for trees in parks, trees on municipal properties, and trees planted along Sonderen, Woodlawn, Bryan, Mexico, and Feise roads. The tree care program consists of planting new trees, treating specific trees with insecticides, trimming and dead-wooding trees, and removing dead trees.

Removing dead trees has been a particularly large undertaking in that O’Fallon is losing large oak trees due to the horned gall. The horned galls on the oak trees are created by an insect that, in a fairly short time of five years, is killing massively large oak trees in the older subdivisions of our O'Fallon community. Oak trees that have survived adversities for the last 120 years or more are surrendering to the horned oak gall In the summer of 2023, we were forced to take down one of the five largest known oak trees on O’Fallon. This oak tree was along Firma Rd. at the Wastewater Treatment Plant. The majestic tree was gradually dying and shedding limbs onto Firma Rd; some measuring eighteen inches in diameter. We were sad to see the tree cut down but leaving it standing was unthinkable.

The Landscape Division contracted the removal of one of O’Fallon’s biggest oak trees

The tree was located on Firma Rd. at the Wastewater Treatment Plant

The Firma Rd. oak tree stump measured 6-1/2 feet in diameter.

Tree City USA

Tree City USA is a nationwide program sponsored by the Arbor Day Foundation that recognizes municipalities across the United States, as having a dedicated program for the management and cultivation of trees in the community. The Landscape Division successfully established O'Fallon in the Tree City USA program for the first year in 2004. O'Fallon has since remained committed to being successfully recognized as a Tree City USA every year since 2004. O'Fallon now has 20 consecutive years with Tree City USA status.

Commemorative Tree & Bench Program

The Landscape Division administers the Commemorative Tree & Bench Program The program allows individuals to plant a tree or install a bench at various parks and municipal properties to commemorate an individual’s memory, birth, anniversary, or significant event

The Firma Rd. oak tree was approximately 110 years old.

Landscape Beds

The Landscape Division Horticulture Specialist staff of three, cares for landscape beds on every municipal property. A simple way to identify what is under the Landscape Division’s care is, “If it has mulch then the Landscape Division takes care of it.” Landscape beds, covering nearly ten acres total, are areas of mulch filled with flowering shrubs, ornamental grass, perennial flowers, and annual flowers and can be found in every park, along highways, in parking lots, and at every municipal property throughout O'Fallon

Kitchen Garden bed at Zumwalt’s Fort.

Our team of three Horticulture Specialists are each assigned to certain properties throughout the city which we refer to as a section. Each Horticulture Specialist applies their knowledge to care for the landscape beds in their section. Understanding the needs of the flowering shrubs and ornamental grasses, such as pruning and shearing, and scouting for pest problems is a large portion of landscape bed care.

Landscape beds at the DD CLIP site at I-64 & Hwy DD.

Secondly, significant components of caring for perennial flower landscape bed plantings include understanding the needs of perennial flowering plants which coincides with their life cycle through the changing seasons. In addition to propagation and transplanting, prime examples of perennial beds would be the Alligators Creek Aquatic Center and the Krekel Center landscapes at Civic Park.

Flowering hydrangea shrubs at City Hall East Entrance

Perennial flowers in the landscape bed putting on a summer-long show. at the Krekel Center.

Thirdly, each Horticulture Specialist is attentive to the needs of our annual flower beds which are planted in late April and provide colorful displays until the first frost of late October or early November. The annual flower displays require a good deal of horticultural “green thumb” skill in understanding fertilization and particularly irrigation needs, and occasionally some disease and insect control.

Irrigation

Irrigation systems are an important piece of equipment in caring for the landscapes across O'Fallon. The Landscape Division cares for fifteen irrigation systems that keep flower displays and lawns looking their best. The irrigation systems are pressurized in April before spring flower planting, and the systems are shut down and winterized in November before Thanksgiving. During the months of operation, the Horticultural Specialist team monitors irrigation needs and regularly adjusts irrigation run times and active days to maintain the proper balance of root zone moisture for landscape beds and lawns. The irrigation systems are regularly monitored for sprinkler performance and the mowing team always has a watchful eye for system leaks.

A colorful display of annual flowers at O’Fallon City Hall

Irrigation at City Hall

Weed Control

Controlling weed growth is an ongoing activity for grooming the landscape beds. The Horticulture Specialists use multiple means of controlling weeds, but mulch is the first defense in the weed battle. The Landscape Division uses twenty tractor trailer loads of mulch throughout the season. When the summer seasonal staff members arrive, a crew of four to six depart every morning to work through every O'Fallon property applying a fresh coat of mulch to landscape beds and tree rings.

mulch for weed control.

The second strategy for controlling weeds in landscape beds is making an application of preemergent herbicide in mid-spring. A pre-emergent herbicide uses chemistry to kill the germinating weed seed. This prevention of a seed from establishing itself gives the Landscape Division a competitive edge against the monthly reoccurring weed crop.

The 3rd strategy for weed control is to use a postemergent herbicide in which staff members use backpack sprayers to make a chemical application directly to the foliage of the weed growth. This method always carries some risk in that some of our plants get hit with “friendly fire” from these spray applications.

Spreading

Spray applications to control weeds.

Pulling weeds by hand.

And the 4th strategy for weed control is old-fashioned hand pulling and digging. There are occasions when we are not able to keep up with the rate of weed growth and an assault team armed with shovels is dispatched. It's not a surprise that the battle for controlling weeds reaches such a high level because as we are creating ideal conditions for plant growth for our favored plants, we are simultaneously creating ideal conditions for weed growth

Hanging Baskets

The hanging basket displays on Main Street are a favorite with local residents and businesses. The Landscape Division hangs fifty-four baskets on twenty-seven light poles on Main Street and eager to inquire during the winter months, “What will the baskets be like this year?” We receive numerous phone calls through the summer as the baskets develop into large colorful displays and we typically get two or three inquiries as to purchasing the baskets at the end of the season. In addition to the Main Street baskets, the Landscape Division also cares for thirteen wall baskets at CarShield Field.

Volunteers

The Landscape Division provides an annual opportunity for volunteers to make their contribution to the community.

The Earth Day flower planting in the spring provides a platform for 75 volunteers to plant about 7,000 flowers on a Saturday.

Volunteers are also used for large mulching projects using about 100 or more people.

Volunteers remove frostbitten flowers in late October for Make A Difference Day, when we fill an entire trash truck in one morning.

Many thanks to the Volunteer Services Division for bringing these groups to work with us!

2023 Landscape Highlights & Accomplishments

Wastewater Treatment Plant Armorment

The new wastewater treatment plant facility came online during the summer of 2023 and the landscape division recognized that plastic and metal conduits coming down into the grass areas as well as some overhead structures would need to be protected from accidental bumps from the mowing equipment and string trimmers. The landscape team coordinated with the wastewater plant team to excavate and rock areas that needed protection. This process would protect structures and reduce string trimming which would speed up the Required to mow the property.

By the end of the project, 9,000 square feet of fabric and nine truckloads of rock were positioned to protect structures and reduce string trimming.

City Hall flower display.

At the Wastewater Treatment Plant, two-inch clean rock with a weed fabric barrier was installed to protect delicate structures from accidental bumps with mowing equipment.

areas were also rocked to eliminate excessive string trimming for years to come.

Steep

Main Street CLIP LED Sign

The Landscape Division has laid the groundwork for the installation of a new CLIP style LED video board sign on Main Street, just north of the K and 70 interchange in O’Fallon. This sign will serve as a means to display video messages, particularly targeting vehicles entering and exiting O’Fallon from Hwy. 70. The chosen location is strategic as the sign will attract attention from visitors to O’Fallon. The sign installation is scheduled to take place in late winter of 2024 by the contractor The new programmable sign will significantly enhance communication and advertising capabilities to an audience the city is currently missing. Other similar signs within the city are at the Justice Center, Civic Park, CarShield Field, and at O’Day Park.

Rendering of the new Main Street CLIP LED Sign

Senior Center Landscape Renovation.

The landscape team joined together to renovate the landscaping in front of O'Fallon Senior Center during the winter of 2023. The Senior Center landscaping was the original planting from when the Senior Center was constructed over 20 years ago. Overgrown evergreens and Maple trees were removed the beds were reshaped and planted with 58 flowering shrubs that will add a significant amount of color and interest across the front of the building. New sod was installed to finish off the project. The plants that were installed were chosen to conform with a pink and white color theme but are fairly small and will need time to develop. This re-landscaping was done to complement the new construction on the West End of the building.

O’Fallon Senior Center

PARKS DIVISION

Scope of Responsibility

The Parks Division is responsible for the year-round maintenance of eight park properties and their appearance seven days a week within the City. This Division maintains athletic fields, recreational courts, CarShield Field, playgrounds, Lake Whetsel, trails, and other park amenities.

The Park Division handles construction projects that take place in the Parks with its Construction team. The Construction team installs many of the park amenities such as playgrounds, recreational courts, pavilions, custom fabrication, and concrete work.

The division also supports the Tourism and Festivals Division by providing the support team for all setup/removal and maintenance of park grounds during Special Events.

Areas of Responsibility

CarShield Field

Civic Park

Dames Park

Fort Zumwalt Park

Knaust Park

O’Day Park

Ozzie Smith Sports Complex

Sports Park

Westhoff Park

Small Engine & Equipment Repair

Construction Team – Special Projects

Irrigation/Backflow Preventer Equipment & Repair

Passive Parks

Passive Parks – The department maintains the City’s four passive parks, Civic Park, Fort Zumwalt Park, Knaust Park and O’Day Park. The team maintains amenities such as Lake Whetsel, playgrounds, water features / splash pads, trails, camping, fishing, a disc golf course and roller hockey and basketball courts. Our passive parks have some of our more serene settings with five rentable pavilions. The passive parks are host to

many special events such as the O’Fallon Jammin’ Concert Series at Civic Park, Celebration of Lights at Fort Zumwalt Park, and various special events at O’Day Park.

Athletic Parks

Athletic Park – The department maintains four athletic parks, Dames Park, Ozzie Smith Sports Complex, Westhoff Park and Sports Park consisting of baseball/softball fields, soccer fields, Cricket and Lacrosse. Other amenities you will find in these parks are volleyball, horseshoes, tennis, basketball, roller hockey, basketball, pickleball and 6 rentable pavilions. These parks are host to many tournaments and recreational programs. Ozzie Smith

Sports Complex is host to the most notable special event, the City’s annual Heritage & Freedom Festival. The teams in these parks perform a high volume of field maintenance to keep up with the demand for recreational activities.

Performance Measures

Labor Hours Explained

• Overall, the 2023 totals are consistent with past years. Some categories are up or down over 2022 totals. The weather each year has a direct influence on where the labor hours are spent.

• Labor for snow removal was down due to the low amount of snow events we experienced.

• Concrete labor hours were up. This was due to some large concrete projects we had. IE. Two additional pickleball courts.

• Field maintenance was up due to required improvements to field A at Ozzie.

• Playground maintenance was up due to work completed at Brendan’s Playground and safety tile repair.

Park Personnel & Locations

Jeremy Wolfmeyer – Park Superintendent

Brian Krafft – Parks Maintenance Supervisor

Tim Snyders – Parks Construction Supervisor

(from left to right)

Donna Pinkston – Parks Office Manager

Linsay Reavey – Administrative & Budget Coordinator

(from left to right)

Jeff Boerding – Parks Maintenance Supervisor

Construction Team

Construction Team – This team is responsible for the majority of the construction projects in our parks. The work you will find them performing includes: Concrete slabs, curbs, sidewalks, parking lots, playground install /repair, roofing & siding, and any metal fabrication needed. To sum it up, they take care of the infrastructure projects in the parks.

(from left to right) Steven Underwood, Eric Beard, Drew Iler, Tim Snyder, and Tyler Robinson

Small Engine Technician

Small Engine Technician – Our Small Engine Technician keeps the department rolling. This position performs all preventive maintenance and repairs on the equipment the department operates. Responsibilities that fall under this position include: weed eaters, blowers, mowers, trailers, tractors, tires, tune-ups, rebuild of equipment, electrical repairs, maintenance software and the monitoring of the department’s fuel pumps.

Parks Maintenance Crew Leader Irrigation

Irrigation – Our irrigation is maintained by a Park Maintenance Crew Leader. Irrigation is vital to the condition of our park system. The department is responsible for 11 irrigation systems that keep our turf thriving through the growing season. Both irrigation systems at Sports Park obtain its water from a 1,000-foot wells. O’Day Park has a unique water recapturing system to utilize the water from the water feature to irrigate the grass in over half of the park. In addition, this position is a certified backflow preventer tester, maintaining and checking over 50 backflows on an annual basis.

Bobby Meyers

Fort Zumwalt Park – Civic Park – Knaust Park

(from left to right) Mike Reigh and Jack Prinster

O’Day Park

(from left to right) James Robertson and Jeremy Roderique

Ozzie Smith Sports Complex – Westhoff Park

(from left to right) Justin Rivet, Bryan Reitmeyer, Nick Dunn, Tyler Fennewald and Eric Duffner

Sports Park

(from left to right) Tony Bizelli, David Baxter, Dylan Clark, and Brian Krafft

Dames Park

(from left to right) Luke Bornhop and Zack Miller

• Dames Park

2023 Notable Accomplishments

o Scoreboard improvements on field one’s football field.

o Installed benches throughout the park.

o Installed updated security locks on restroom facilities.

o Summer Maintenance on athletic fields.

o Flood sediment removal throughout the park.

o Repairs were made to fields 2&3 goals.

• Westhoff Park

o Installed new safety surface and replaced the center playground structure at Brendan’s Playground

o Installed two additional pickle ball courts with lights.

o Installed security cameras throughout the park.

o Installed conduit and fiber for better network connectivity throughout the park.

o Installed networked gate opener and smart locks on several facilities.

• Sports Park

o Increased mowing efficiency with a new grounds mower.

o Planted a natural prairie on the south side of phase 1.

o Completed summer athletic field maintenance and converted 3 turf fields to a new Bermuda variety and converted one field to a bluegrass Bermuda mix.

o Prepped the fields for over 600 games.

o

• Ozzie Smith Sports Complex

o Added concrete curbs, new fence fabric, and yellow fence cap to field G.

o Field A infield renovation completed.

o Hosted Heritage & Freedom Fest.

o Summer athletic field maintenance.

o Hosted 20 tournaments.

• Fort Zumwalt Park

o Installation and removal of the Celebration of Lights display.

o Dead tree removal.

o Replaced a 20’ section of outflow pipe to Lake Whetsel.

o Installed a historic railroad searchlight signal at the Model Railroad Club building.

• Civic Park

o Removed several dead trees with stump grinding.

o Boy Scout group installed an exercise pull-up bar system.

o Repaired fencing around the slide at the pool

• Knaust Park

• O’Day Park

o Dead tree removal.

• CarShield Field

o Repaired synthetic turf near Big Dog wall

o Replaced one exterior steel door and frame.

o Painted railings throughout the facility.

o Installed access road in Northeast corner of the stadium.

• Irrigation

o Tested and repaired all backflows throughout the Parks and Recreation facilities.

Facilities Maintenance

Scope of Responsibility

The City of O’Fallon Facility Maintenance department has undergone a significant transformation to optimize service delivery. Before 2007, dedicated teams managed maintenance for Renaud Center, City Hall, and all park facilities Recognizing the potential for a more efficient approach, the city took a bold step by consolidating these groups into a single, city-wide maintenance department.

This strategic move aimed to leverage the collective knowledge and experience of our talented staff. By fostering collaboration and cross-training, the department could ensure consistent, high-quality maintenance throughout all city buildings. The results have been good, with the department effectively managing a vast portfolio encompassing:

• 420,582 square feet of building space: This includes facilities like City Hall, Senior Center, Justice Center, Renaud Center, and departmental offices (Parks, Streets, Water & Sewer, Fleet, and Environmental Services) averaging approximately 60,190 square feet per maintenance staff.

o We provide minor electrical and HVAC services for wastewater and water treatment plants, encompassing an additional 60,941 square feet.

• The department's commitment extends beyond buildings. They meticulously maintain a staggering 448.40 acres of city property. Maintaining and servicing such as:

o Lighting on roads, parking lots, and ball fields

o Plumbing fixtures, drinking fountains, splash pads, and water features

The City's Facility Maintenance department exemplifies a proactive approach to ensuring the well-being of our city's infrastructure. Through consolidation and collaboration, they deliver efficient and comprehensive services, fostering a well-maintained environment for our entire community.

Service Descriptions

The City's Facility Maintenance department boasts a team of seventeen dedicated professionals, ensuring the smooth operation and upkeep of our buildings. Leading the charge is a seasoned manager, ably supported by two experienced working supervisors.

Our core team of six maintenance staff members are highly skilled craftsmen. Each boasts a well-rounded background in:

• HVAC

• Electrical

• Plumbing

• Locksmithing

• Painting

• Carpentry

This diverse skill set allows them to tackle a wide range of maintenance challenges effectively. One staff member is dedicated to each of the following buildings: City Hall/Senior Center, Renaud Center, and the Justice Center. The remaining three members provide comprehensive maintenance services for all other city buildings.

Complementing the maintenance crew are eight dedicated custodians. They provide essential day-to-day cleaning services, ensuring a clean and inviting environment across our facilities. Their expertise extends beyond routine cleaning, encompassing:

• Bio-hazard cleaning

• Stripping and waxing floors

• Carpet extraction

By combining a highly skilled maintenance team with a dedicated custodial staff, the Facility Maintenance department fosters a well-maintained environment for our entire community.

2023 Notable Accomplishments

The Facility Maintenance Department is constantly seeking innovative ways to reduce our environmental impact and energy consumption. The Facility Maintenance Department's dedication to energy conservation is a testament to the City's commitment to environmental responsibility and efficient resource management. Through these ongoing initiatives, we continue to reduce our environmental footprint while ensuring the comfort and functionality of our city's buildings

Lighting the Way with LEDs

• We're progressively replacing outdated T-8 fluorescent fixtures with cutting-edge LED technology. These new fixtures boast impressive efficiency gains, ranging from 18% to 44% per fixture compared to their predecessors.

• Beyond efficiency, LEDs offer numerous benefits:

o Reduced flicker and hum for a more comfortable environment.

o Improved light distribution for better visibility.

o Less heat generation, minimizing reliance on air conditioning.

• The City Hall and Senior Center are nearly 80% complete in their LED transition. The Renaud Center is actively following suit, with a 15% conversion rate and plans for further upgrades, including the gymnasium within the next five years. Notably, all new city buildings already incorporate LED fixtures from the outset.

• Parking lot illumination is entirely LED-based, maximizing energy savings in these areas as well.

• To further optimize lighting usage, motion sensors are being strategically installed. These sensors ensure lights remain off in unoccupied areas, automatically activating only when necessary.

Harnessing Variable Frequency Drives (VFDs)

• VFDs play a crucial role in our energy-saving strategy. These intelligent devices regulate the flow or pressure of systems like pumps and fans by adjusting the frequency of the supplied electrical power.

• VFDs ensure that these systems operate only at the power level required to meet actual demand, resulting in significant energy savings.

HVAC Optimization for Smart Climate Control

• We leverage advanced Trane software to meticulously monitor and manage our HVAC systems. This software facilitates:

o Automated transitions between occupied and unoccupied modes.

o Efficient scheduling to minimize energy usage in unoccupied buildings, particularly during evenings, weekends, and holidays.

o Intelligent analysis of temperature fluctuations, allowing units to adapt and maintain comfortable conditions efficiently.