Dry summer leads muni to start watering Delaney Park Strip

ANCHORAGE, Alaska (KTUU) - The flower beds at Delaney Park in downtown Anchorage are full of color but the grass is not, as some residents are concerned the 13 city blocks of popular parkland aren’t receiving enough water.

Anchorage Parks and Recreation Department Superintendent Steve Rafuse said the city began using water trucks to disburse 20,000 to 30,000 gallons of water on the park strip in the middle of June because of the dry conditions.

“One thing we could’ve done is probably looked at the trend of the summer a little bit earlier and started getting water down maybe towards the beginning of June,” Rafuse said.

Rafuse noted that during the summers, their crews don’t regularly water the grass because there’s typically enough rain — allowing them to focus on cutting the grass.

“Fortunately the grass isn’t dead here on the park strip,” Rafuse said. “It’s a bluegrass variety so it’s hardy, it’s dormant in the summer, it’s drought-resistant. So when you get conditions like this, and it’s really been a dry summer the grass will bounce back.”

The department has been using the water trucks to help tamp down fire danger at parks and using them at green belts as well, according to Rafuse.

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