Vandalism is problem in Alamosa parks

ALAMOSA — Vandalism is a problem in Alamosa’s city parks, Alamosa Parks & Recreation Director Andy Rice told the city council during a recent meeting.

Rice said the public bathrooms are the primary vandalism targets. He said the week previously partitions were torn down in the Cole Park bathrooms by city hall. That has happened several times, he added.

He said although the city has experienced vandalism in other parks, Cole and Zapata Parks have been hit the hardest.

In Zapata Park, vandalism and drugs are a real and recurring problem, Rice said. The city recently repaired the sewer line where drug paraphernalia and other debris had clogged it up, and within a week of repairing the line, it was already down again for the same reason. He said although the system is aging, the main problems are vandalism and drugs.

“We are seeing major, major problems,” Rice said.

He said while the bathrooms were down the city contracted to have portable toilets in Zapata Park, and the provider had to replace them three times in two weeks due to vandalism.

He said one of the comments during a community meeting on the budget was the city should have nicer public bathrooms in its parks. He added that the city is trying to do that but is having a difficult time due to vandalism. The city parks department is working with public works and the city police continually on this problem, he said.

He added that it is costing in the thousands of dollars each year.

Staff members are looking into how other communities have handled these problems, Rice said.

He said increased law enforcement presence is one solution, but “it’s not like these guys don’t have enough on their plates.”

Alamosa City Manager Heather Brooks said, “We don’t have easy answers.”

She agreed with Rice that the problem is significant, and staff is trying to do what it can to address it. For example, because so many toilets have been broken, the city is considering replacing toilet seats that can be removed or damaged with steel seats without lids.

Another solution is to put cameras on the outside of the restrooms.

“We are looking at options. It’s not necessarily an easy situation,” Brooks said.

Councilman Michael Carson said he has received photos and complaints specifically about Zapata Park. He said perhaps city staff being more visible in the area would be helpful even if they were not police officers. He said people walk in the park at lunch and 5 p.m., and they are seeing these kinds of problem at those times. They report to him that a whole group of people, like four or five adults with a couple of children, would come into the park at once and cause these problems. Some of those who contacted him told him they were pretty sure there was illegal activity occurring regularly at the park.

“What I have told them is ‘you have to call the police’,” he said. Some people are afraid to do that, however, because they might be targeted, he said.

Carson said the city has spent money trying to make its parks attractive, but this type of vandalism and fear is “creating a haven for bad behavior.”

He added, “We need to address it if we want to have safe parks.”

Councilman David Broyles suggested surveillance cameras with signs alerting people that the premises are under surveillance.

Councilman Charles Griego said maybe Neighborhood Watch could be reinvigorated, so people who see something bad could report it to the police. Brooks said the council has historically supported Neighborhood Watch with funds in the budget, and those interested in having Neighborhood Watch programs in their parts of town are welcome to contact the police to set them up. The city is willing, but area residents need to show a desire to have the program and participate in it, she explained.

Alamosa Police Chief Ken Anderson added that his department has always been willing to participate in Neighborhood Watch programs when area residents show an interest. In the past, however, there have only been a few people who have shown up at the meetings.

Carson said he wanted to promote that more in his neighborhood.

Mayor Ty Coleman suggested a reward system for people reporting problems in the parks. Brooks said the city could look into a hotline number and dedicated funds for that purpose, or folks could contact Crimestoppers, 589-4111, which already has that type of program in place.

Anderson said the police department has been contacted numerous times about these problems  — “the call volume has gone up” — and has been trying to develop solutions. He added that police have increased patrols around the parks.

“This is a problem we are dealing with right now,” he said. “We are doing the best we can.”

Chief Anderson said he could not afford to station someone at the parks. “The community is who we have to rely on right now,” he said.

He added that Crimestoppers is a good avenue for people to report this type of activity, and Crimestoppers has funds available for successful tips.

Councilor Kristina Daniel said people can call anonymously if they are afraid about repercussions. Sometimes they just need to know what resources are available to them, she added.

Brooks said another resource is the “Taking Back Alamosa” Facebook page, which provides valuable community safety information.

Daniel said she was concerned about the safety of city staff cleaning the parks because of needles people were leaving in the parks and even in the toilets. “I want as much as we can to be safe,” she said. She said maybe there would be a way the city could install needle disposal boxes in the bathrooms designed so people could not get into them to take the used needles out. The city could also put up signs about the needle exchange that already exists in Alamosa.

Brooks said that was one of the things the city staff are looking into, as far as what other communities are doing and if they have had success with that or are dealing with unintended consequences.

Caption: Zapata Park has been especially targeted by vandalism. The City of Alamosa is working on solutions to this problem in Zapata and other city parks./Courier photo by Helen Smith