Dysart et al deputy mayor Walt McKechnie said the township intends to press charges against the culprits who caused thousands of dollars of damage at Head Lake Park last week.
The vandals struck sometime between the late afternoon July 10 and early morning July 11, destroying six solar lights and several no smoking and camera warning signs, trashing the recently-installed privies, damaging gates, spray painting graffiti on the roof of the new playground structure, damaging part of the jungle gym, and breaking a four-person teeter-totter.
Andrew Wilbee, Dysart’s director of parks and recreation, said staff are currently going through security camera footage to try and identify the culprits.
He said a new teeter-totter would likely cost more than $5,000 if it needed to be replaced. Staff are still determining the total cost of all damages.
McKechnie said he’s “deeply disappointed” by the act, which comes less than a year from the opening of the new $600,000 playground.
“It’s frustrating because our township and people in this community invested a lot of money to make that playground happen. It’s hard-earned taxpayer money that’s being destroyed,” McKechnie said. “Why someone would want to do this, I don’t know. That playground has been well-used since it opened. Kids love it.” Despite the damages, the playground will remain open. Nicole Baumgartner-Spooner was there with her three children July 17. Having played a key role in making the playground a reality, leading community fundraising efforts alongside fellow realtor Brandon Nimigon, Baumgartner-Spooner said she was upset to see the facility senselessly damaged.
She said the teeter-totter was one of the few pieces of accessible equipment in the park, and she regularly sees people of all ages, including seniors and children with mobility issues, using it.
Reward for information leading to arrests
“That’s the biggest shame here, is those people won’t have anything to use for a while when they come to the park,” Baumgartner-Spooner said.
McKechnie said the township has been in contact with Haliburton Highlands OPP.
“Whoever committed this, if you’re on video, we’ll be pursuing charges. It might not seem like a lot of money to some people, but to me it is. With all our costs going up, we can’t afford to keep fixing and replacing things people have taken upon themselves to break,” McKechnie said.
The Highlander received a call from a woman who claimed to have witnessed “a group of teenagers” damaging signs and the privies. Asking not to be named, the source claimed she approached the group to ask them why they were doing this, only to be met with a flurry of insults. She said they ran away once she took her phone out and started taking pictures. She has since been in touch with police.
It’s the second major act of vandalism at the park in as many years. Damage to the gate and fencing at the dog park in July 2022 saw the facility closed.
Anyone charged could find themselves in hot water – mischief causing more than $5,000 in property damage often carries a hefty fine, community service, and can lead to up to 10 years of jail time. Damages less than $5,000 carry a maximum six month jail sentence.
Dysart coun. Pat Casey, the representative for Haliburton village, visited the park July 16, saying he was surprised by the extent of the damage. He’s offering a $500 reward to anyone with information leading to a conviction.
“We need to make sure this doesn’t become a regular event, otherwise we won’t have any equipment left. There was a lot of people who donated money, time, resources to this. It’s a great park – when you see the amount of money that went into making it happen, for someone to so blatantly abuse that, it’s disheartening,” Casey said.
