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affected by the current economic downturn by supporting the employment <br /> of individuals in the community who have lost jobs to reduction in <br /> workforce or economic hardship. Through this grant the Parks and <br /> Recreation Department were able to employ over 50 local residents <br /> between the months of April and September. These work crews often <br /> tackled mowing and cleaning duties of various neighborhood parks and <br /> vacant lots. <br /> Further resources in 2010 came in the form of volunteers. This past <br /> October was dedicated as Volunteer Recognition Month by the City Parks <br /> and Recreation Department by virtue of over 10,000 hours dedicated to our <br /> operations by volunteers. The 10,404 volunteer hours we tracked on our <br /> data constitute a monetary value of$182,802.00. Volunteers assisted in all <br /> types of activities. Cleaning parks and river banks, staffing recreation and <br /> zoo programs, assisting in special events and fundraisers, and participating <br /> in park and equipment upgrades are a few examples of the type of <br /> assistance these generous citizens in our community provided the Parks <br /> and Recreation Department. <br /> The city parks system consist of 57 parks and numerous facilities scattered <br /> across the city. Maintaining the parks inventory is always a big job. Our <br /> maintenance crews have consistently over the years used creative methods <br /> and cost saving measures to keep the park infrastructures in place. Roof <br /> repairs, concrete upgrades, plumbing, electrical, and carpentry skills are <br /> performed daily by the parks maintenance staff. In addition, construction <br /> projects in the parks are often performed by parks maintenance. One <br /> example was the total reconstruction of the Blue Field diamond at the <br /> Bellville Softball Complex. Park crews raised the sinking ball field with <br /> over 4500 tons of new dirt, graded the field, installed the irrigation system <br /> and surrounding fence, and laid 80,000 square feet of sod to complete the <br /> project. In addition to this project, the maintenance staff constructed and <br /> completed the fifth diamond at the Bellville Complex. These in house <br /> efforts saved the department significant dollars that we were able to spend <br /> on other neighborhood park upgrades. In 2010 the Park Maintenance <br /> Division mowed 25,000 acres of park land, mowed 125 different street <br /> islands, picked up and hauled 15,000 yards of leaves off of the city streets <br /> - 7 - <br />