Officials say Delano Park vandalism only latest incident at city parks

Jun. 9—Vandals continue to target Decatur's parks, with a Delano Park restroom receiving an estimated $2,000 in damage Sunday.

Aaron Lang, maintenance supervisor at Decatur Parks & Recreation, said the city filed a police report Sunday regarding the condition of the restrooms near the tennis courts at Delano Park.

"Someone went in there and basically just wrecked it," Lang said. "The paper towel dispensers had been knocked off the wall, the toilet paper dispensers had been knocked off the wall, the stall door was ripped off, and the back of the toilet was broken and thrown in the floor. Just kids being vandals."

Lang said the men's and women's restrooms were vandalized, with more of the damage in the women's room. He said in his 16 years with the department, park vandalism was nothing new.

"Usually every year when school lets out, we'll have an uptick and then it'll kind of die off for a little while and then we'll have another random act of vandalism," Lang said. "Basically, kids get bored and it is what it is."

Kristin Propst of the Delano Park Conservancy said unattended youth who frequent the park could be potential culprits.

"They tend to do things that unsupervised youth do," Propst said. "They have been destructive on several occasions."

Lang said the restrooms at Wilson Morgan Park's Adventure Park playground, Delano Park and Rhodes Ferry Park remain unlocked all year around during daylight hours because of the parks' popularity, and most of the vandalism occurs at these parks.

Propst said earlier last week, a bronze plaque was damaged near the Delano Park children's area by vandals. She said there have been six different vandalism incidents this year at the park and she has also seen excessive littering by some park guests.

"It's sort of an ongoing thing just to keep the park the way we want it to be for those people who come to visit it with their families or for recreation or relaxation," Propst said. "It's just a challenge for us."

Decatur police spokeswoman Irene Cardenas-Martinez said officers arrived at Delano Park at 10 a.m. Sunday. She said the total cost of damage to the restrooms was approximately $2,000 and police are treating the incident as a misdemeanor.

Cardenas-Martinez said the case is still under investigation and individuals should call Detective Jeffrey McRae at 256-341-4611 if they have any leads or tips.

Before the report was filed Sunday at Delano Park, Lang said the city filed a report in early spring on damages to a restroom near the Adventure Park playground at Wilson Morgan Park. Parks and Recreation officials suspect the damage was done by a homeless man who was living inside the restroom.

"He had apparently locked the door to the restroom so nobody could get inside," Lang said.

— wesley.tomlinson@decaturdaily.com or 256-340-2438.