A campaign to encourage more eyes on schools and parks this summer has resulted in more Vandal Watch participants and a greater interest in protecting public property, says coordinator Tim Kelley.
"We are looking for dog walkers and neighbours and people who use schools and parks to keep an eye out," said Kelley, who runs a program for Port Coquitlam and School District 43 to deter vandalism.
The ad campaign, which ran in The Tri-City News in June, resulted in new interest in the program that has run for many years to encourage people to report potential problems before they occur so security personnel can respond. (Kelley said people interested in participating should email him at [email protected].)
Heightened awareness during summer is key, say SD43 officials, because while window breakage is down, vandal repair costs are still high, and graffiti is becoming a more common problem at school facilities.
Each year, the district spends more than $100,000 to repair broken windows and clean up graffiti, the equivalent of hiring a teacher in the classroom.
"If there was less vandalism, more money would be available to the classroom," said Ken Niven, the district's assistant director of maintenance.
Vandalism does take its toll on local schools. Minnekhada middle in Port Coquitlam, for example, was recently hit by vandals and had 17 windows broken. They were quickly repaired and last week, a graffiti removal contractor was out at the lacrosse box behind the school repairing damage.
"Some schools are just more prone to vandalism," Niven said, noting efforts to beef up security will be part of anti-vandalism methods this summer. The district has a 24-hour patrol checking out trouble spots at its 76 facilities, in addition to Vandal Watch patrols responding to neighbours' complaints.
As well, screens have been placed on some of the windows at Minnekhada to prevent breakage.
"With our Vandal Watch program in place, we would like to see more neighbours at schools calling in when they see groups of youths or acts of vandalism," Niven said.
