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The Birmingham City Council is mowing the lawn into two meter wide strips in a strange attempt to ensure social distancing in the parks.
Council workers have begun cutting out odd-looking “Mohican-style” sections in outdoor spaces as coronavirus restrictions are eased this week.
Park staff are creating “canals” that are approximately two meters wide, while leaving a similar area of uncut grass to show how far apart they should be from each other.
England’s highest authority says the idea will act as a visual and practical guide to the safe use of the city’s 591 parks and green spaces.
They are believed to be the first local authority in the country to take steps to try to stop the spread of the virus.
Some residents have welcomed the idea amid an expected increase in park visitors starting tomorrow (Wednesday) after the reduction of the closure.
But others have accused the council of “sponsoring them” and said it left the gardeners doing “half a job” with the result being a “farmers’ field.”
Lisa Proctor, 36, who lives near Billesley Common in the Moseley area of the city, said: “People will just ignore it anyway. It looks ridiculous and it’s a crazy idea.”
“It’s just an excuse for them to do half a job and leave most of the grass uncut. I can’t see the reason behind this to be honest. It looks like a farmer’s field.”
The father of one of them, Paul Canning, 44, who walks his dogs in the same park, added: “I think it’s a little condescending to point out what two meters are in an open space.
“It’s not like a store where space is a bit more limited, if people use common sense I can’t see the need for this at all. Just do your job and mow the lawn.”
“And it looks like a real monstrosity. It looks like they’ve tried to recreate Wembley and failed miserably. It’s really incredible.”
However, another park visitor, Hannah Flaherty, 26, who jogs there every day, added: “It is a smart way to ensure social distancing. Anything that helps is a good thing.”
“I think some people are still a little bit foreign or just plain ignorant, so I hope this makes people think twice before getting too close to the park.”
The number of visitors is expected to increase in the parks, now people can meet someone who is not a member of their home in open spaces.
Councilman John O’Shea, a cabinet member for the street and park scene at Birmingham City Council, said the idea came to him after lawn mowing work stopped.
He added: “As far as we know, we are the first to do this. It is Birmingham leading the way.
“A significant number of our park staff have been diverted to other tasks on the street scene during the early days of the coronavirus crisis.
“This meant that regular mowing tasks were interrupted, but now we have reached the point where some of that staff can begin to return to some of their regular tasks.
“Because the grass has been allowed to grow for several weeks, it means that where the grass is cut there will be a noticeable difference.
“My park manager came up with the idea. He noticed that the mowers cut into two two-meter-wide halves.
“When you cut on one side, you leave the other side motionless. It is a visual cue because we cannot really force the distance.
“We have had a pretty good experience in our parks with most people following the rules. The few cases have had a high profile.
“The park rangers who monitor the parks, advise people with loudspeakers, have had no major problems.
“Now we are moving into a new phase with the relaxation of the bull run to a certain extent, so we are providing a visual guide to the people who use our parks.
“He is a bit like a Mohican, but it is a serious idea and by doing this we are reminding people that we want them to be in our parks using them safely.”
“By cutting these canals, we will make our parks more usable, and more securely usable, where people will have some guidance on how to follow national guidelines for staying 2 meters from people outside of their family.
“The fact that we have 591 parks and open spaces of very different sizes means that it is not easy to promote the message of social distance in each and every one of the sites.
“But this is a way of doing something, better using the limited resources we have at this difficult time.
“We were already discussing this idea, but now the Prime Minister has made announcements that will inevitably lead to a significant increase in visits to city parks, now is the time to test it.
“Unfortunately, we still can’t open our visitor centers, cafes, playgrounds, playgrounds, and outdoor gyms, but if the country continues to make good progress, then I hope we can open them in the coming months.”
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