The grass on both sides of the park is yellowed and dying and in
some patches there is little more than dirt
By Lori Stuenkel Staff Writer
Gilroy – Christmas Hill Park is looking less like a park one month after the Gilroy Garlic Festival brought nearly 130,000 visitors to its grounds.
The grass on both sides of the park is yellowed and dying, and in some patches there is little more than dirt.
But city officials say the dead sod is an annual occurrence after the festival that will be mended in about two weeks.
“It does take several months, because what happens is we’ve found out in trial and error that the safest way to get the grass back is to let it go dormant,” said Bill Headley, facilities and parks manager.
Although the top layer doesn’t look so good, the root system is still intact, but compacted, he said.
The fields have already been aerated to give the roots more room to expand and to allow better irrigation, Operations Services Supervisor Chris Orr said.
The sprinklers in the park have not run since before the start of the festival.
The irrigation system is shut down several days beforehand and turned on again during the following week, Orr said.
The city used to continue to water the grass during the festival, but quickly found that vehicles tear the up the grounds.
When the water is turned back on, some of the main lines need to be replaced each year, Orr said.
“It’s inevitable with that many vehicles and traffic out there,” he said.
Problems with a booster pump have delayed re-seeding and watering, he said.
The sprinklers do not run again until the fields are aerated and re-seeded, to prevent weed growth.
Workers will spend today re-seeding parts of the fields, and will water throughout the day.
“We’ll do OK,” he said, “we’re hoping for a 70 to 80 percent germination rate.”
Within two weeks, Orr said, residents should see green grass again.
“By next spring, it’ll look like new,” Headley said. “That’s part of the price tag this town has to pay in order for us to have a fairground-level type event at a community park.”
As for the actual price tag, neither Orr or Headley knew the exact cost, but Orr said the Garlic Festival Association splits it with the city.
This year’s 27th Annual Gilroy Garlic Festival attracted almost 130,000 people over a three-day period.
