Council debates outsourcing cemetery mowing and use of growth inhibitor; motion to send to committee

The council discussed cemetery maintenance and the tradeoffs between keeping work in‑house versus outsourcing. Sean asked whether mowing would be outsourced; operations staff explained that mowing itself can be completed quickly but weed‑eating is the intensive work and that a growth inhibitor had been used to reduce labor demands.

A supervisor summarized the in‑house experience: “We don't mind the mowing. The problem that we get behind on is the weed eating… If someone else weeded it and we can mow it, we can mow it in a day.” Another staff member described the growth inhibitor and cautioned about temperature effects and chemical application limits set by the Illinois Department of Agriculture.

Council discussed putting the work out to bid but noted that once bids are solicited the city may be required to accept the lowest responsible bidder; staff suggested one approach was to estimate an in‑house cost and include a threshold in the solicitation so only bids below that threshold would qualify. The council agreed to refer further work and cost analysis to committee.