Parks crews: 2,000 flowers planted in two days, but staffing remains tight

Parks staff told the advisory committee they have been carrying out a heavy planting schedule while struggling to fully staff operations.

"We've put 2,000 flowers in the last 2 days," Jason said, adding that his crew of eight or nine people completed that work and that another 1,000 snapdragons were expected next week. McClure told the committee the department has 31 full‑time staff responsible for roughly 550–600 acres and that seasonal hiring goals (19) were not met, with an average of eight to nine seasonal workers retained weekly.

Members discussed the difficulty of recruitment, retention of experienced seasonal workers, and the operational tradeoffs that constrain the department as it moves into holiday decorations and non‑routine winter projects.