Council On The Hunt For Vandals

Just as Australia is the Lucky Country, so Griffith could be named the lucky city - we have amazing food and wine, gorgeous gardens, productive farms, boutique shopping; just about everything a body could need.

Yet still we have that small number of individuals that persist in doing their best to ruin it for everyone else.

Following a spate of attacks of vandalism on a number of Council and community facilities, Council has issued a timely reminder that there is a policy extending a reward for information leading to a conviction.

City Park, the Community Gardens and the new amenities block at Jubilee were attacked by vandals recently.

They set fire to bins, damaged amenities and left large amounts of rubbish behind.

Police have CCTV footage and are investigating.

Griffith Mayor, Councillor Doug Curran said this was the most recent in a string of vandalism attacks on Council property during this year.

“Council is committed to providing the best possible facilities for our community to enjoy, but the increasing number of acts of vandalism makes it that much harder to ensure funds are being diverted to where they should be,” Councillor Curran said.

“Over the last 12 months, there have been a large number of attacks on Council facilities including plants being stolen from Yambil Street, graffiti and plants damaged at the Burley Griffin Community Gardens, damage to the new amenities block at Enticknap Park and sadly, so many more.

“I’m not sure what satisfaction these fools get from these actions but our community deserves better.

“We have organisations in our city looking to Council to support their endeavours, but so much time and money needs to be used fixing what these idiots keep doing - every time something is damaged or stolen, it has a significant impact on our community.”

Director of Infrastructure and Operations, Mr Phil King said any works required to rectify vandalism impacted on Council and the wider community.

“Firstly, vandalism diverts staff away from scheduled work and puts them behind - this then impacts on the ability to provide services to our community,” Mr King said.

“Secondly, the financial impact is an unexpected cost to repair or replace the damaged items which also has a flow on effect to our community.

“While sometimes the cost is minimal, other times it is significant and these funds cannot be recovered.”

Councillor Curran reminded residents that Council offers a reward for information on acts of vandalism which lead to a conviction.

“Council has a policy in place (GC-CP-314) which is there to encourage the public to play a role in safeguarding the assets of the community,” he said.

“Under this policy, Council will pay a reward of up to $5,000 to members of the public for information resulting in the conviction of persons damaging Council property - information received will be treated confidentially.”

Councillor Curran requested all residents close to public reserves and parks adopt a Neighbourhood-Watch-style approach.

If you see or hear anything that you believe to be suspicious or you have information relating to the identity of the culprits, report the incident to the local police or Council on 1300 176 077.

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• Local Council