Parks staff are working diligently to remove snow and ice from paths, parking lots and sidewalks from city-owned parks and properties. Parks staff are responsible for nearly 35 miles of paths and sidewalks throughout the city. As you can imagine, this can take some time to complete. Staff are working to get through these areas as quickly as possible, but may not be able to return to a particular sidewalk quickly, if snow continues to fall. Staff are working longer shifts in order to keep in front of the current snowstorm. Please be patient with us as we work to remove the snow as quickly as possible. (updated Feb. 2, 2022).​

Mowing

Ann Arbor parks system is comprised of 162 parks covering more than 2,200 acres. Parks maintenance staff is responsible for the care and upkeep of the parks, which includes mowing. Currently, parks are mowed every 14 days. This schedule can be greatly impacted by the weather. For the past five to six weeks, rainy conditions, coupled with occasionally warm, sunny days, have been good for tree, wildflower and grass growth but certainly not for mowing. Additionally, some parks have low-lying areas that have been too rain-soaked to mow. Mowing equipment also has the potential to get stuck or be damaged if we’re not mindful of the areas we care for.
 
When the weather does permit us to mow, our staff often work longer days (into the evenings) and the weekends to catch up. We understand these areas appear unkempt, and we want you to know we’re working as swiftly as possible to get them mowed and back on our regular schedule. Please use the A2 Fix It app or A2 Fix It on the city website to report any concerns or maintenance issues or call the parks customer service office at 734.794.6230. We thank you for your patience, and we hope you will continue to enjoy the parks!

In 2022, Ann Arbor City Council unanimously approved Resolution R-22-094-resolution to Support The No Mow May Initiative, which encourages property owners to voluntarily refrain from mowing open spaces in May to help support survival of pollinators. While City park operations were not able to comply with this initiative in 2022,  park staff are active in many other sustainable land management initiatives and have been expanding pollinator and no-mow areas each year. In May of 2022, a survey was conducted by parks outreach program GIVE 365 to get community input regarding preferences, ideas, and expectations for mowing of public park land. For an overview of the survey findings, view the No Mow May Recap ​​​or peruse through ​the RAW DATA Parks Mowing Survey (Responses)​.  Stay tuned for pollinator friendly action steps coming in 2023! Parks staff are committed to sustainable stewardship practices so that Ann Arbor park land remain valued public spaces in our community and contribute to environmental goals.  For more information on the No Mow May initiative, visit the Office of Sustainability and Innovations No Mow May webpage. 

Reporting a problem​​