Parks & Reserves
City Parks and Recreation Areas
Mowing
Most parks are on a fortnightly schedule with high priority parks such as Anzac Peace Park being done weekly. Other large parks with little infrastructure are on monthly schedules. There are many parks that cannot be accessed for mowing during winter due to it being too wet.
Gardens
Garden maintenance is undertaken for all gardens around the CBD and within Public Open Spaces. All areas are visited within a fortnightly schedule.
Reticulation
Reticulation maintenance is undertaken annually in preparation for the summer months and regularly for the sporting fields. Reticulation is switched off throughout the winter months, although some may be required for the sports fields dependent on the rainfall.
Sports Fields
Sports fields are maintained regularly to ensure playing surface remain at a high standard. Maintenance undertaken includes mowing, top dressing, fertilising, weed control and coring.
Playgrounds
Playground inspections and maintenance is undertaken at all 44 of our playgrounds each month, which includes raking/sifting sand and ensuring all equipment is safe for use
City Reserves
How often are trails and natural reserves maintained?
Trail and natural reserve maintenance is undertaken on a cyclic program and is largely influenced by the seasons and demand. Our Reserves Teams endeavour to get to all our high use areas in late spring early summer once the vegetation growth slows.
City Prescribed Burns
The City of Albany and its Volunteer Bush Fire Brigades carry out prescribed burns as part of the City's burn plan.
Areas requiring fuel reduction have been identified in the City's ‘Bushfire Risk Mitigation Strategies’ and ‘Fuel Management and Works Program’, prepared for the City in consultation with Senior Local Fire Brigade personnel and key stakeholders.
Prescribed burns are undertaken to maintain biodiversity in the wide range of ecosystems within the City’s reserves and improve the community’s bushfire safety.
Fuel Reduction is vital in reducing fuel loads so that in the event of a bushfire, the impact is not as destructive or extensive, and allows areas of low intensity for brigade personnel to safely fight wildfires.
The burns may cause impact to some residents through smoke and traffic diversions, but we ask for the community’s patience.
Letter box drops advising of the burns will be provided to adjacent landholders, and signage advising of the burn will be erected in most burn locations.
Due to the constraints of weather conditions, limited notice can be provided to the residents prior to the start of a burn. On the morning of the burn, an advice will be broadcast on ABC Great Southern radio.
Firewood
Dead timber and leaf litter plays in important part in the ecological processes of areas of natural bushland. Dead trees often have hollows that are used by nesting birds while fallen logs provide habitat for many small animals and food for insects etc.
For this reason firewood cutting is not permitted in any City of Albany Bushland Reserves or alongside roads.
With the permission of the land owner community members are allowed to collect firewood from private property/farms in the Albany area.
Please call the Department of Biodiversity, Conservation and Attractions on 9840 0400 for more information and for locations where you are permitted to collect firewood in the Great Southern.
Download a map here.
Wildflowers
Bushland Reserves managed by the City of Albany play an important role in conserving the unique environmental values of the area including the wildflowers.
Viewing of the wildflowers in the reserves is popular during spring and summer when a diverse range of plants are flowering.
Community members wishing to view the wildflowers are welcome to access the reserves but must remain on tracks and trails open to the public to minimise impacts on the environment.
Picking of wildflowers is illegal in City Reserves (and other reserves such as National Parks).
Environmental Weeds
Our Reserves Team provides a targeted approach to controlling environmental weeds in high conservation and community valued City of Albany reserves, while supporting community groups actively involved in caring for the City’s reserves. Given the scale of the weed problem, and the amount of land for which the City is responsible, it is essential that these areas of high value are targeted as a priority.
We rely on the enormous contribution our community plays in protecting our valuable natural environment, and there are many opportunities for you to help fight environmental weeds.
The following guides can help you identify some of Albany’s most invasive environmental weeds:
How to identify Sydney Golden Wattle
Albany’s 12 most unwanted environmental weeds
Albany Weeds Monthly Guide
Get Involved as a Bushcarer
Interested in lending a helping hand? There are many opportunities for you to contribute to protecting our valuable natural environment.
Join us at one of our City run Bushcare Busy Bees, held fortnightly on a Friday morning. Click here to check out the events calendar to find upcoming dates and locations:
Fortnightly Community Busy Bees
Or is there a special spot you’d like to help look after? If you would like to set up a Busy Bee of your own, we’d love to hear from you! Get in touch at [email protected].
Click here to download our guide to starting your own Busy Bee and becoming a City of Albany registered volunteer:
Guide to setting up a Bushcare Busy Bee
Volunteer Application Form