City of Atlanta council members debated options to cover parks and cemetery maintenance during the FY 2025–26 budget workshop, weighing the cost of a city mowing contract against hiring or reallocating full‑time employees.

Finley presented numbers showing the general‑fund mowing contract estimate at about $265,000 and a separate utility‑fund mowing placeholder of $58,064. He told the council that two burdened FTEs with equipment would total roughly $207,000 and that three burdened FTEs would be about $271,000 — figures staff used to compare contracting versus in‑house staffing.

“Virtually a wash from 3 FTEs at $20 an hour versus the motor contract just for general,” Finley said, describing the arithmetic the staff used to build alternatives.

Council members raised service and accountability concerns. One council member said parks staff were already stretched and noted the cemetery has not been fully kept up to schedule: staff “will do what they can” and “if they know there's a cemetery or a funeral, they'll do an area around where that funeral is gonna be,” an exchange that underscored operational constraints.

Council direction and actions

- Staff was directed to solicit a cemetery‑only bid or contact bidders who submitted to the recent comprehensive mowing RFP to ask whether they would honor a standalone cemetery price; staff will report back on bidder interest and whether submitted prices can be held. (Direction)
- The council agreed to benchmark the budget surplus/contingency (the staff-referenced ~$3.25 million projected year-end amount) against contracting options and consider either a hybrid approach or phased hiring. (Consensus/direction)
- For near-term operations, council instructed staff to keep four parks positions funded (budget currently covers three) to avoid immediate service gaps; council discussed hiring one position now and a second in February if needed. (Direction/implementation)

Cemetery specifics and cost considerations

Staff said a standalone cemetery contract estimate from the recent bids was approximately $75,000. Councilmembers and staff discussed the challenge that some bidders are not full‑time lawn contractors and cautioned against assuming bids will remain valid without direct confirmation. Finley suggested the city could ask bidders if they would honor a cemetery‑only price for another 30 days while the council finalizes its budget direction.

Operational tradeoffs

Councilmembers noted contracting typically carries a premium because contractors factor profit and may source labor differently than the city, and warned that underbidding can leave the contractor or the city “upside down” on costs mid‑contract. Staff recommended careful contract language and monitoring provisions, and acknowledged the limited local contractor pool could affect competition and pricing.

The workshop did not award any contract. Staff will return with additional bid clarifications, a cemetery‑only RFP if council directs, and updated budget packaging for formal consideration.