Spring maintenance is underway in Markham, and Millie the Butterfly is lending a hand!

MARKHAM, ON – May 9, 2025 – The warmer weather and longer days have finally arrived! After a long, cold, and snowy winter, Markham crews have already been hard at work getting our City ready for the spring and summer months.  

“Keeping our infrastructure in top shape and ensuring everyone can safely enjoy our green spaces during the warmer months is a priority for us here in Markham,” says Mayor Frank Scarpitti. “We have an amazing Operations team who work tirelessly to keep Markham’s roads among the best in Ontario and to ensure our parks, trails, ponds, and open spaces are beautifully maintained.”

The large amounts of snow throughout the winter can be tough on our city sidewalks, roads, and streetlights. Crews have been busy clearing over 11,000 catch basins, fixing cracked and damaged sidewalks, filling potholes on roadways, and repairing streetlights to make our City safe and enjoyable this summer.  

We continue to work with advanced artificial intelligence (AI) software from Visual Defence Inc. to make paving our roads and filling potholes as efficient as possible. This software allows us to better detect holes and flaws on surfaces, allowing us to plan repairs more effectively. The use of this software assists our City crews in identifying and repairing more than 2,000 potholes every year.  

Safety is always top of mind in Markham. Our vehicles are always in top shape to keep our staff and community safe. The Ministry of Transportation issues Commercial Vehicle Operator’s Registration (CVOR) scores to municipalities based on their violation rate. Here in Markham, we are proud to have one of the best scores in York Region.  

Always remember to stop and smell the flowers while you are out enjoying our City this summer. Our operations team has been preparing and maintaining over 1,000 hanging baskets and planters, along with 60 planting beds and gardens across our parks and facilities, continuing their work to help Keep Markham Beautiful.  

As we approach this colourful season, our new friend and City mascot Millie the butterfly has joined us! You will see Millie around City events like Canada Day and Milliken-Mills Children’s Festival (MMCF) in the coming months. You will also see a familiar face on our City website because Millie is the face of our Chatbot 3.0, an enhanced virtual assistant that is powered by AI technology, available 24/7 on markham.ca.

Staff work hard to keep our City clean and enjoyable. We hope you will do your part to help Keep Markham Beautiful too. You can find helpful tips in our Good Neighbour Handbook available at markham.ca/GoodNeighbour. Let’s all take pride and responsibility when it comes to enjoying our public spaces. A friendly reminder to always:

• Put household waste, recyclable, and organic waste (such as pet waste) in the correct container. Learn more at markham.ca/WhatGoesWhere
• Do not litter in City parks and open spaces, this includes not dumping household garbage in these areas.  
• As you enjoy the long weekends and holidays this summer, please take note of when fireworks are allowed (and when permits are required). Fireworks are not allowed on City property, including parks, fields, and roads. Learn more at markham.ca/Fireworks

Watch Markham Mayor Frank Scarpitti provide an update on our 2025 Spring Maintenance plans: