Beauty interrupted: vandalism can paint an ugly picture of an otherwise attractive park system.

Enjoying time in our national, state and city parks is a privilege that rewards our hectic lives with endless recreation in a beautiful setting. Sadly, a major problem nationwide continues to disrupt the natural beauty of the places we cherish. Vandalism is an issue that has plagued the park system for many years, and while many improvements in prevention have been established, the problem still persists at an alarming level.

Vandalism's Many Varieties

Vandalism rears its ugly head in many forms. The most basic and often overlooked type of vandalism is simply overuse or misuse of the park's resources. Trampled grass from makeshift playing fields, unnecessary littering and "shortcutting" off of designated trails are examples of vandalism in its simplest form and are seldom punished with more than a warning.

More damaging, vandals often contribute to the deterioration of the park facilities by stealing items from the land like signs, flags or trail fitness features. Analysts believe that most theft occurs on a dare or a need to impress friends rather than a burning desire to have the item.

Through the years, park officials have also seen a rise in anger-related destructive vandalism aimed at the park's facilities or property. This malicious type of vandalism can result in the destruction of a park sign or breaking a window in a public restroom. Lynette Anderson, a park ranger with Boulder County Parks and Open Space has seen this kind of damage occur in a most "explosive way."

The Boulder Parks staff often installs compostable toilets as an environmentally conscious way of handling public waste in its park restrooms. Ranger Anderson expressed with a bit of humor, "It seems that someone figured out that these toilets were more combustable than compostable and would throw M-80 (high-powered firecrackers) into the vault which immediately starts a fire."

She added that sometimes damage occurs to the park rules and regulations signs as well. "If a park visitor disagrees with one of the rules, dogs on leash for example, they will scratch out certain words or symbols in defiance."

In an article written by Ty Young for the Arizona Republic (source: www. azcentral.com), Chandler Park Maintenance Supervisor Kris Kircher often sees reports of people bashing sprinkler heads, playground equipment and water fountains with the river rock used in the park's landscaping. "Destruction of property is the most expensive form of vandalism in our park," he commented.

Graffiti is a Big Problem

Statistically, the most common and particularly troublesome form of vandalism continues to be graffiti and park managers nationwide are crafting strategies for prevention, prosecution and education regarding what has been declared a damaging and costly form of expression. Tennis and basketball courts, skatepark concrete, park benches and the walls of park facilities all become the "canvases" of these vandals who often see their "sprayed-on damage" as an art form.

"Tagging" has become a means of self-expression by young adults who create a name or alter-ego for themselves and spray paint that "tag" on various forms of park property. This practice that first grew out of the creative elements of inner-city hip-hop culture and displayed some elaborate art qualities, soon became a way for gang culture to mark territory in parts of the urban environment. The fascination with this culture soon made its way to the suburbs with tagging becoming a real and costly problem for communities and park resources.

While tagging is one element of graffiti vandalism, the destructive nature of simply spray painting profanity or names on park property is equally common. In July of this year, Lockwood Forest's Boxford Trails in Massachusetts, a trail system of pristine hiking and horseback riding opportunities, had profanity and green splotches spray painted on the horse jumps, commemorative plaque and forest rules sign.

Nancy Merrill, the chairman of Boxford Trails Association and Boxford Open Land Trust commented on the damage saying, "I have never seen vandalism like this before. The horse jumps can be painted over but removing the paint on the bronze plaque will be difficult and expensive."

Boulder County Parks and Open Space also lists graffiti as its most common form of vandalism damage. Anderson acknowledges the cost and impact of graffiti damage, but is pleased to inform that it is typically a fast cleanup process in her parks. She explains, "The graffiti in our parks is not permanent since we have a full-time sign technician who is pretty adept at removing the paint. He uses a chemical that removes the spray paint and markers very easily as long as the problem is addressed in a timely manner."

Although signage can sometimes be easily fixed, graffiti can also have longer-lasting effects and lead to park or area closures. Hueco Tanks State Park in El Paso, Texas, contains one of the greatest resources of climbable rock in the United States and draws top climbers from around the world to test their skills on the incredible climbing routes in the park. From a preservation aspect, the park also contains amazing rock drawings and pictures from ancient native peoples who once lived in the region.

Unfortunately, these historic examples of ancient rock art were spray painted by partying park visitors who felt that spraying the name of their favorite rock band over the native art was appropriate. The park staff immediately took action and made some sections of the park completely off-limits to the public and others accessible only with a guided tour.

In addition, all visitors to the park must view a movie about preserving the natural history of the park prior to getting access. While climbers are typically a conscious group of respectful park users, many areas of Hueco Tanks, some containing incredible climbing routes, became off-limits or available only with a scheduled tour. The freedom to climb and explore the wonders of the park was limited because of the selfish graffiti vandalism of others.

The Costs and Alternatives

The costs of repairing or cleaning up the damage that vandalism causes add up quickly and often tap deeply into park budgets and resources. The city of Boise, Idaho, published the costs associated with vandalism in its city parks for 2005 on the city's Web site, www.city ofboise.org:

Material Costs:     $27,929.41
Labor Costs:        $18,100.49
Equipment Costs:     $6,498.64
Contract Costs:      $3,304.90
TOTAL:              $55,833.44

Unfortunately, it is typically the citizens of the community who pay for the clean-up or repair. Anderson explains, "The costs that ultimately the citizens of Boulder County pay for are the staff time and materials used to repair the damage." She adds, "If the vandal is caught, a fee is assessed to that person and the money goes into the general fund for Boulder County. Unfortunately, the vandal is rarely apprehended."

Park authorities have taken other measures to curb the temptation to vandalize and keep damage costs low. These include rubber-coated picnic tables to prevent carving or burning and designated graffiti walls to encourage graffiti art and keep painters from damaging other park facilities. The Boulder Skatepark in Boulder, Colo., erected a wall for use by graffiti-artists and it has been highly effective in keeping the paint off the clean, white concrete surface of the skatepark bowls and features. Interestingly, it has also added color to the park with the continuously changing art of the graffiti wall and a true display of talent associated with urban graffiti art.

Prevention Ideas

Besides the ideas already mentioned, more advanced forms of vandalism prevention are developing within park planning organizations. Using new technologies and interactive opportunities, park officials have developed some innovative means of monitoring and preventing vandalism.

Many city and county Web sites now have links to their parks and recreation page where vandalism information and damage forms can be found. Besides providing a phone number to call to report vandalism, the form allows a citizen to fill out a damage report and submit it electronically so that staff can find and repair the damage quickly. The form also allows the citizen to describe the person who committed the vandalism if the person was seen in the act. An example of this can be found at www. lfucg.com.

Another use of technology that has been effective, although controversial, is the use of cameras to monitor park activity. Reports have shown that just the knowledge that cameras are watching can reduce the impulse to commit a crime. Parks that have used this technology have had success, but do handle a great deal of questions surrounding invasion of privacy issues.

Proactive programs that encourage whole communities to take pride in their park resources and develop a sense of ownership have also proven effective. Glendale, Ariz.'s "SeeMore Program" reported an astonishing reduction in vandalism by 110 percent by simply encouraging the entire community to become involved. This type of grassroots prevention has shown fantastic results.

Looking Ahead

Keeping parks free from the damages of vandalism requires a group effort of concerned citizens and proud community members who gain a great deal of satisfaction from enjoying the recreational opportunities that parks can provide. Reporting vandalism to authorities immediately can actually have a positive impact on future damage.

According to Anderson, "The longer an act of vandalism goes unreported or un-repaired, the appearance of 'not caring' on the part of the park is shown, and thus encourages vandalism even more." Taking measures to prevent and repair damage to our parks now is essential for preserving the natural beauty and close-to-home adventures that future generations can enjoy with pride.