Someone has to do it

Charles C. Labenz Arizona Daily Wildcat Grounds service personnel Bill Harris feeds mesquite tree branches into a chipper machine while Cleotis Hill (back) cuts branches, near La Paz Residence Hall, last week. Approximately 80 employees work for Grounds Services to maintain the main campus area, beginning their day at 6 a.m.

Someone has to pick it up.

Those someones are from the Grounds Services department at Facilities Management.

Because crews begin at 6 a.m., many students only see the results of their efforts.

About 80 employees work for Grounds Services, which maintains the main campus, University Medical Center and UA-owned houses in surrounding neighborhoods.

Yet the division is not just comprised of groundskeepers.

Grounds assistant supervisor Janine Corbin said the department employs landscapers, masons, roofers, equipment operators and others, who are divided into teams to handle the University of Arizona's workload.

Whether on-foot or cruising in one of the department's electric golf-carts, brown-and-tan-clad grounds services personnel can be seen all over the campus.

Mike Meneiger, associate director of facilities management, said many of the vehicles in the department's motor pool are alternatively fueled, including their new $7,000 "Bombardier," - a small electric vehicle that looks like a golf cart crossed with a Dodge Neon.

As supervisor, Corbin coordinates the day's jobs and checks in at each work location to check on the details, like sufficient materials or proper safety precautions.

Last Monday, Grounds Services jobs included:

Roofers putting a new roof on a house at 1203 N. Mountain Ave.,

Masons pouring concrete at the Steward Observatory Mirror Casting Laboratory

Groundskeepers out in force to trim the grass on the 60 acres of turf throughout the campus.

Corbin said the university is trying to reduce the amount of on campus grass because of its high maintenance and water usage.

Since 1984, six acres of turf have been eliminated, saving an estimated 5.5 million gallons of water per year, Corbin said.

Besides mowing grass, two teams of groundskeepers trim the almost 6,000 trees throughout campus.

Cleotis Hill and Bill Harris were trimming down mesquite trees in the La Paz Residence Hall courtyard last Monday.

Hill cut the branches and Harris then fed them into a trailer-mounted chipper machine, like the one that gained notoriety through the Coen brothers' movie, "Fargo."

The UA's chipper, which can chop branches up to three inches in diameter into a coarse mulch, is powered by a motor comparable to an eight-cylinder automobile engine, Corbin said.

Harris had on the proper safety attire, but there is always the chance for injury on a machine like this, Corbin added.

Corbin said groundskeeper Francisco Guzman sustained a minor eye injury last week, even though he was wearing safety glasses at the time.

In his 23 years with Grounds Services, Hill said he has dealt with situations ranging from rescuing stuck birds to harassment from irate students and faculty about foliage he cut for campus upkeep.

Once, Corbin said, a resident in one of the surrounding neighborhoods got upset with the groundskeepers over a tree they were cutting down and started shouting at the workers.

The woman started throwing shoes, Corbin said, "one even landed in the chipper."