County is a national Gold Medal finalist again; robotic mowers and 37th Street playground up for state awards
The county's parks division says its robotic mowers saved about 320 staff hours this year.
LOS ALAMOS - Los Alamos County is a finalist for the National Gold Medal Award for parks and recreation management for the second year in a row, the county said Oct. 28. The award is given by the National Recreation and Park Association and the American Academy of Parks and Recreation Administrators.
The county is also nominated for two New Mexico Recreation and Parks Association awards. One is the Parks/Grounds Maintenance Award, for robotic mowers at North Mesa Sports Complex and Overlook Park in White Rock. According to the county's nomination data, the mowers logged 4,101 miles and saved about 320 hours of staff time at the two sites in 2026.
The other nomination is for the renovated 37th Street playground, which has accessible routes, ground-level and elevated play and a slide set into the natural slope. County staff asked children at local elementary schools what they wanted in the playground.
The Parks Maintenance Division cares for 21 sites covering about 1,784 acres with 18 employees, the county said.