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Show THE THUNDERBIRD I 1 SUSC THURSDAY, APRIL 20, 1989 PAGE 9 i ! , i i i s I f I I & 4 , - SUSC groundskeepers line up in fives to mow The Lower Quad . Cutting the campus grass takes approximately seven and one half hours twice a week. The grounds crew is responsible for 120 acres. Theyve got spring in their step BY NATALIE COOMBS Each ' spring, susc groundskeepers their fancies to fertilization and This group of men, with a fetish for green, began cultivation this spring nearly a month ahead of schedule to keep up with mother natures hurried pace. The SUSC grounds crew has more than 120 acres to oversee and maintain. In addition to the immediate campus, the grounds crew takes care of the grounds surrounding the presidents center and the college-owne- d home, SUSCs day-car- e 1500 West where Nice on building Corporation and SUSCs Head Start Program are located. In the past, effective care of the grounds has required the help of six student workers in e addition to the five employees hired by the college. However, SUSC has upgraded its lawn mowing equipment and now hires only three student workers. One of our new mowers should take the place of three, said Grounds Superintendent Gary Davis. Mowing the campus lawns, a semiweekly event, takes seven and one-hahours to complete each time. Plans for summer improvements have already begun to sprout. This summer, SUSC plans to upgrade and completely automate the campus sprinkling system. Davis said the improvement will allow all watering to be done at night, reducing the amount of time and labor needed to completely irrigate the campus. The grounds crew is also responsible for campus landscaping projects; however, a full-tim- i ) i i lf i i professional landscaper has contracted to plant trees on campus. The majority of the trees have shown a low survival rate, and SUSC will not be required to take responsibility for the trees care nor pay for the trees until they are replaced with living trees. SUSC will complete landscaping surrounding the new performing arts building, Randall L. Jones Memorial Theatre, while the lawn east of the Auditorium will be elevated for better drainage. New sod and a sprinkling system will be installed in both places. The west lawn of the presidents residence and the campus mall, the area between 200 South and the old student center, will also have irrigation systems installed. Davis hopes to have the projects completed by fall quarter 1989. Campus employees and three e students will complete the landscape work, the irrigation system and the regular maintainence. Davis said various activities that take place on campus often disturb regularly scheduled grounds work. The Summer Games and other sports activities take us out of our regular pattern, but we just have to work around it, he said. Davis said SUSC hires one student specifically for maintaining the area of the Shakespearean Festival, the presidents lawn and SUSCs daycare center. The students responsibilities in these areas include lawn care, weeding, washing walkways everything except watering, said Davis. Davis added that the college, and particularly the grounds maintainence crew, couldnt get along without student help. full-tim- |