City of Darwin finalises open spaces mowing contract

The days of little doggos getting lost in the overgrown parkland eyesores are over as Darwin council takes action to make the areas great again.

Dog walkers who have lost small mutts in Darwin’s long grass are in for a reprieve.

City of Darwin announced earlier this month it has swapped its lawn mowing contract after a two-month break.

Eagle-eyed residents have noticed grass in council controlled open spaces has been growing unchecked in recent weeks, and the council’s own social media has had a number of posts from Top End locals.

Parks in Anula, Wanguri and roadside verges were singled out for special mention.

One man posted: “I noticed today around Wanguri Park the grass is knee high.”

City of Darwin grass Wanguri Park May 2023

Another wrote: “The park at Anula is in a state. Disability friendly swing has finally been fixed ... but the grass directly next to the park hasn’t been touched.”

Another woman shared: “Not before time. Many of our grassed areas and parks look very unkempt.”

A City of Darwin spokeswoman said council has recently signed Sterling NT to a three-year contract to deliver council’s mowing services, with a two-year option.

Sterling NT has been awarded City of Darwin's lawn mowing contract

“Following a public tender process, a new mowing contractor started in the first week of May,” she said.

“Between March and handing over to the new contractor starting, green spaces were mowed intermittently.

“The new contractors have quickly got to work and are following a schedule to get our green spaces looking tidy in order of priority.

“Green spaces are prioritised by a number of factors, including the type and amount of community activity.

“Now that our new contractor is on board, we will be seeing more regular maintenance of our green spaces.”

Council said there were 426 parks and green spaces maintained and mowed under the contract.