What: The Detroit Mower Gang is a group of people that descend upon the abandoned parks of Detroit and mow them in a furious fit of weed whacking.
Who: The Detroit Mower Gang is a bunch of do-gooders that refuses to let parkland go to waste. We also refuse to allow bureaucracy and tightened city budgets get in the way of children playing outside.
How Do I Join: The Detroit Mower Gang is open to anyone. All you have to do is show up to any of our events and bring some type of grass annihilation machine with you.
Why: Because lawnmowers are cool and fun, Because people need us, Because no one else is going to get the job done. You will enjoy joining the Mower Gang if you want to feel the wind in your hair, you like the feeling of a job well done, you enjoy the sound of internal combustion in your ears and the smell of fresh cut grass up your nose. You would enjoy the Mower Gang if you keep seeing riding lawnmowers at yard sales, and you want one, but you live on a small lot.
When: Check out MowerGang.com for more information.
Here are some “before” pictures of the park. It needs our help. Riverside park is located in the shadow of the Ambassador bridge, where Grand Boulevard meets the Detroit River. The park offers a great view of the city, open space, a sparse (and needy playground), some shade trees, and plenty of benches to fish from). Riverside park is situated right on the river. It needs some trash cleanup and a good mowing. At 8 acres, it is a great size for us to tear into. We could finish in a couple of hours and be left with a great place to spend time. If you want to bring your fishing rod, or any other sports gear, feel free.
Here is the sign and what the park looks like from the base of Grand Boulevard.
The playground might be a little worn out, but some of the swings still remain.
There is a giant whale sculpture that kids could climb on. It needs some cement work. Matt, one of the members of the mower gang can do this type of thing, he’s pretty smart and he likes kids, so we’ll probably fix it while we mow.
There is quite a bit of trash strewn about. I guess when a park starts to decline people feel don’t have to act like human beings any longer. That’s why we are going to show up, to let people know this kind of crap isn’t acceptable.
One last picture. This is a view South, where you can see some of the industrial plants along the river. In the foreground, benches where people sit and fish and a girl riding her bike. Also, not some of the nice cement work along the river. This is a nice park, that the city is no longer caring for.
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Contact: mowergang@isderacorp.com