Public Works outlines mowing and brush‑pickup strain after heavy spring rains; town shifts routes to contractor
Get AI-powered insights, summaries, and transcripts
Subscribe
Summary
Public Works staff told the council that heavy rainfall, inmate-labor limits and high brush volumes stretched the department’s mowing and brush-pickup capacity. The town moved about 196 acres of mowing to a contractor (previously 76 acres) and activated a third brush truck to regain a four‑week brush cycle.
Public Works staff briefed the council July 21 on mowing, brush pickup and roadside maintenance challenges after an unusually wet spring and early summer.
Tom Rose (Public Works) said the town’s street crews maintain about 526 mowed acres (not including roads) and subcontractors previously handled about 76 acres. Heavy rainfall from April to June (about 22.5 inches vs. an average ~13.5 inches) and an increase in large private brush piles created multi‑truck work demands that set the brush cycle back to as long as 10 weeks at one point.
What the town changed: staff said the town added roughly 120 acres of contractor‑mowed routes (raising contractor acreage to about 196 acres) so in‑house crews can focus on potholes, ditch repairs and other infrastructure work. The town also reactivated a third brush truck (normally two in service) to catch up; Public Works said it is now back to a roughly four‑week brush pickup cycle.
Other constraints: Rutherford County’s workhouse program now limits where laborers can be positioned relative to roadways for safety reasons, reducing previous efficiencies; staffing vacancies and one injury also affected capacity.
Why it matters: mowing and brush pickup are frequent citizen complaints; the department emphasized weather and unusual volumes as drivers of the backlog and outlined operational changes intended to restore routine cycles.
Clarifying details and metrics provided: - Town-maintained mowed acreage: about 526 acres (Public Works only) on a two‑week mowing goal. - Contractor acreage after change: about 196 acres (up from ~76 acres previously subcontracted). - Brush pickup: town serves about 16,000 residential locations on a four‑week brush pickup cycle; brush trucks carry ~70 cubic yards; the town hauls about 22 loads per week to the mulching facility. - Excessive brush events: Public Works logged about 35 residences this season with “excessive” brush piles that required 2–4 truckloads each, which materially increased workload.
Discussion versus decision: the council and staff discussed options (hire additional employees versus continue contractor usage); staff said hiring is an option but warned of ongoing budget and liability implications. Councilmembers asked staff to present options, including a staffed alternative to the county workhouse program; staff said they would return with comparative data.
Outcome and next steps: staff said the contractor route changes and third brush truck activation have brought the program back into a manageable cycle; staff will continue to analyze whether to hire additional staff or increase contracted services and will report back with metrics.