ALMA – It appears vandals have been damaging lighting standards in Wallace Cumming Park here and the local Optimist Club would like to put a stop to it.
“This has been going on for about a month now,” Alma Optimist Club president Jeremy Morton told the Community News.
Morton said club members believe vandals have been “snapping off” aluminum light standards installed by Mapleton Township to light up a walking trail in the park.
“They are aluminum poles and they’re fairly tall … What somebody’s doing is grabbing onto them and shaking them back and forth, enough to get them to weaken and then it snaps, or they’re tying something onto them and pulling them down,” he explained.
About eight of the 40 standards, which support solar-powered lights have been broken off over the past few weeks.
Some of the poles, Morton noted, have been thrown into a nearby farm field.
Mapleton director of public works Jamie Morgan said township staff have already repaired the damaged poles and, so far, the cost of damage has not been significant.
Damage from motorized vehicles in the park has also been occurring, Morton pointed out.
“It’s a non-motorized park – no motorized vehicles are allowed out there – and lately, there’s been four-wheelers going out there and a golf cart, which isn’t great. It’s well posted about no motorized vehicles in the park.”
The Optimists are hoping local residents will keep an eye on the park and report any suspicious activity to the police.
“It’s a beautiful park,” and “we just want people to be aware of what’s going on,” said Morton.
“Once it starts getting talked about … it seems to maybe go away a little bit,” he added.
