9 November 2010

TAMS surprised by spring

| johnboy
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long grass [Long grass today]

The ABC informs us that the Department of Territory and Municipal Services, surprised by the annual arrival of spring growth, is looking for more contractors to mow the grass:

“We’ve got a panel of contractors who we’re working with at the moment and we’re even looking across the border to look for some other contractors,” she said.

“It’s not as easy as going out there and putting a mower on the ground. You’ve got to have a good understanding of traffic management plans and there’s a lot of signage involved. We’ve got to make sure it’s done properly.”

TAMS asks you to be patient and know they’re doing as best as they can.

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Gungahlin Al10:13 am 14 Nov 10

Skidbladnir said :

I live in a suburb which now has some grass next to houses which is over 6’5″ high.
(I know this because I can hide in it just by walking into it, no need to crouch.)

Next to houses eh? so what you are saying is that the owners of said houses are blithely waiting until “they” come and mow the grass? When in fact it is up to the owners of said properties to attend to the maintenance of their own verges?

But to the issue of maintaining the general public realm, it is pretty crook when TAMS are unable to plan for such basics. In much the same way as I’ve been amazed that they have been incapable of keeping on top of pothole repairs throughout the drought, and I’ve been wondering how will they cope when it actually starts raining again? Answer: they won’t, it seems. In spades.

I live in a suburb which now has some grass next to houses which is over 6?5? high.
(I know this because I can hide in it just by walking into it, no need to crouch.)

Do we ask why you are hiding in long grass?

wildturkeycanoe1:09 am 13 Nov 10

Easy solution – get the buggers on the dole to get out there with a mower and fix the problem.
Issues
1. It’s now too late, a standard mower can’t get through the first few feet without clogging up!Like the reserve behind us which is near 6 feet tall.
2. Like you could get someone on welfare to show up for [hard] work! [I sympathize with those who have hayfever because I can’t even go in my own backyard at the moment and I barely have a blade of grass because it won’t grow, unlike the acres of weeds on the other side of the fence]
3. The government is too dumb to think of ideas like this.
4. Even if the government did think of this, some stupid law, or insurance/compensation issue would prohibit its implementation.
In no time at all this is going to become a problem for us such as snakes,weeds and fire hazards,which as we know caused a lot of problems in 2003.Remember?? What has the government learned since then? Apparently not much.

Here is their promise from the last budget….
“All Canberrans will benefit from a $3.8 million capital and $5.2 million recurrent investment over four years in the second stage of the Strategic Bushfire Management Plan for new bushfire prevention programs.” – Budget paper No.1
Somehow this plan is unavailable on the net due to some “technical difficulties” – typical.
I can see this money well spent on….well, someone tell me where any of it has gone so far!
If nobody mows these grasses soon, it’ll become a free-for-all to all those firebugs out there. Rural problems in the middle of the Capital City of Australia. Disgusting.

Yes. but Thumper, you have to understand, TAMS only employees bricks, because even the dumbest animal can understand that rain + spring = plant growth.

Buy some goats.

Allow them to graze where necessary, using portable fencing.

Sell the organic goats’ milk/yoghurt/cheese/wool/fertiliser at the markets.

Problem solved?

And how does that apply to the apes that currently perform said work?

Yes, and the weedsprayers aren’t much better.

You pay peanuts – you get monkeys………

GardeningGirl5:08 pm 09 Nov 10

ConanOfCooma said :

Lots of signs? Traffic managment?

And how does that apply to the apes that currently perform said work?

Often I will see the mowing sign, but no one mowing.

The next day I’ll see someone mowing, throwing all sorts of crap into the traffic, but no signs. Or traffic management.

The golden comment is “We’ve got to make sure it’s done properly.” – You never had before, why start now?

Yes, and the weedsprayers aren’t much better.

Who says you need money to get the grass cut.

Get everyone who has stolen a car and is residing at AMC and chain them to a fuel can and a mower.

I’m sure they’d love to get back on/behind four wheels again…

Dont suppose the ongoing TAMS budget cuts have anything to do with the issue…… Yeah bring in more contractors – they will simply cut money from other areas…..

I live in a suburb which now has some grass next to houses which is over 6’5″ high.
(I know this because I can hide in it just by walking into it, no need to crouch.)

bitzermaloney2:28 pm 09 Nov 10

Conspiracy theory:

Is there a link between TAMS inability to maintain the public greenspace in the ACT and Stanhopeless and Barr’s plan to dig it all up and stick in more housing?

bitzermaloney2:27 pm 09 Nov 10

Funny how the council can find dollars for crap art that no one wants, flowerpots on lightpoles in civic, etc, but can’t manage to coordinate mowing the grass?

3 options:

1. Outsource (in one or multiple tenders across the ACT), with the contracts saying that the grass will be mown at least once every two weeks from 1 Nov – 28(or 29) Feb, and at least once every month or two.

2. TAMS to have a “bring your mower” day at work and get the office staff out doing something useful for the community; or

3. Give the rates money back to the ratepayers and in return they can either mow the grass in their area or employ someone to do it.

During the preceeding ten-year drought the number of contractors was reduced, and now we have a wet spring the situation is beyond their capacity to maintain. Fair enough, we can cut them some slack for that.

“We’ve got to make sure it’s done properly.”

Having been close to one of the previous mowing contractors, I think that with a more robust and QA’d contractor selection process the job would be done properly! Instead the selection is seemingly made based on the bottom line price, with disregard for whether the job can actually be done for that figure.

ConanOfCooma1:30 pm 09 Nov 10

Lots of signs? Traffic managment?

And how does that apply to the apes that currently perform said work?

Often I will see the mowing sign, but no one mowing.

The next day I’ll see someone mowing, throwing all sorts of crap into the traffic, but no signs. Or traffic management.

The golden comment is “We’ve got to make sure it’s done properly.” – You never had before, why start now?

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