Hey Whitby, just as you’re getting your property ready for the upcoming winter season, the Town of Whitby is working hard to prepare its 100 plus parks for colder weather too.

There is no shortage of work that needs to be done to get the Town’s parks and green spaces ready to welcome kids to build snow sculptures, pups who love playing in the snow, and even snowshoers. Read on to learn what needs to be done – you might even learn helpful tips as you get your own property ready for the ice and snow!

1 - Collecting leaves: once the grass slows down and stops growing, the Town’s Parks team collects and mulches leaves in the parks and on the boulevards. Where leaves can be mulched and left on site, they are. Where they need to be removed they are either blown into natural areas adjacent to the parks to decompose, or are collected and composted, to eventually be reused as topsoil.   Why? Rain and autumn leaves can lead to clogged storm sewers, which can result in flooding. You can help prevent flooding on your own street too by keeping areas around your home like your sidewalk or driveway clear of fallen leaves.

2 - Gardening: just like you prepare your plants at home for the first frost, the Parks team is busy pulling the annual plants from our horticulture displays, tidying up perennials and shrubs, and adding compost and mulch to gardens so they are in good shape for next spring.

3 - Maintaining sports fields: Whitby is a Town that loves its sports! The Parks team keeps sports fields in pristine condition by aerating and fertilizing grass, spreading topsoil and grass seed over fields and laying sod in any damaged and worn areas. The team also repairs benches, bleachers and pitching mounds so the fields are ready to be enjoyed next season. If you think the fields look darker during the fall and winter, you’re right. Once park permitting finishes in mid-October park lights are turned off for the season to save energy.

4 - Winterizing plumbing: without insulation water pipes can potentially freeze and burst. To prevent this at the Town’s outdoor facilities, staff prepare plumbing for winter by draining taps, turning off water lines and blowing out the pipes at splash pads, fieldhouses (washrooms), and wherever irrigation is located.  This may be required on your own property too, where outdoor faucets and in-ground irrigation systems are installed.

5 - Garbage can removal: each season Parks staff remove some garbage cans and relocate others from the interior of parks to the road. The relocated cans are placed in high traffic areas residents can continue to access while walking their dogs or enjoying a winter stroll. Relocating some of the cans is also done so waste crews can continue to safely service them during the winter. When the snow thaws and sports are in session again, garbage cans are relocated and added back to the sports fields so residents can put waste in it place.

Once the parks are safely put to bed, the work isn’t done. During the winter months a small team of approximately 20 Parks staff continue to conduct playground and park inspections, maintenance and repairs on a regular basis. Garbage pickup, snow removal and tree pruning also continue year-round. Stay tuned for a story about all the activities you can enjoy in Whitby when the temperatures dip.

The Parks team takes great pride in keeping parks safe and maintained and is always planning and preparing for the next season of fun for Whitby residents and visitors. Enjoy!