x
Breaking News
More () »

Community Park Vandalized for First Time

CENTER TOWNSHIP — A community park in Snyder County that has been open for about two years had its first case of vandalism last weekend. It’s not th...
keene sny vandal

CENTER TOWNSHIP -- A community park in Snyder County that has been open for about two years had its first case of vandalism last weekend.

It's not the amount of damage that's upsetting folks in Center Township, near Middleburg. It's knowing that, after years of raising money to open this park, someone in that same community could damage something they have worked so hard to build.

Usually you take a walk in the park to check out the sights, but in this case, George Richard checks out the damage.

"Well, the garbage can was on top of the roof. All of the garbage was strewn all over the field," Richard said. "The lawn tractor over here was upset."

Center Township's supervisors tell us this is first time Keene Community Park has been vandalized since it opened in 2014.

"When they called me, I was picturing graffiti painted, everything."

It might not look like much now because a lot has been cleaned up, and damage from the weekend vandalism was repaired.

"That was minimum costs. I mean, we had piece of aluminum here used a couple screws," Richard said.

For Richard, it's more than just equipment that was broken. It's his trust.

"It's just, we were just hurt that somebody would feel and stoop that low and come out here on a field that we feel is one of the nicer fields in the area, and then they want to do this kind of thing."

The supervisors are hoping to add on to this playground equipment but that costs money. It's money they now say they will have to use on more security at the park.

"Someone donated the property, so it's kind of a shame that someone would want to come and damage something," said Harvey Leinbach of Lewisburg.

Installing a new security system will cost hundreds. Richard is more concerned about finding out who did it.

"If we find them, we would like to show them what community service is all about."

Township officials plan to repair most of the damage themselves and state police are still looking for the vandals.

Before You Leave, Check This Out