Vandalism rises across Bend parks; Ponderosa Park has had the most incidents

(Update: comments from Bend Park and Rec)

Vandalism removal has already cost more and cleanup has taken more than twice the staff time as last year

BEND, Ore. (KTVZ) -- People enjoying parks around Bend are now having to put up with an illegal and increasing eyesore -- vandalism.

It's not a new issue, as there have been such incidents at various parks over the years.

But Julie Brown, communications manager for Bend Parks and Rec, said Tuesday the park district has already spent more this year on cleanup and removal of vandalism than they did in all of last year.

One frustrated Bend resident posted recently on Nextdoor.com that she saw three middle-school aged boys trying to kick the door off the outhouse at Rockridge Park in Bend. In regards to the vandalism, she wrote, "It’s pretty much a daily thing, and I have watched it go on for several years."

Brown said, “So far this year alone, we have spent almost 1,300 hours responding to and cleaning up graffiti and other vandalism. That’s nearly double the amount of hours we spent in 2020, and that was an increase over 2019."

In 2020, 651 staff hours went to vandalism removal, and in 2019, 503 hours were dedicated to the cleanup.

“It's really unfortunate, because it means that all of the hours that we’re spending responding to graffiti, trying to clean it up as quickly as we possibly can, means that we’re not able to do other services that we want to provide to the community," Brown said.

Ponderosa Park in Bend experiences the most vandalism, she said, and so far 190 hours have gone toward cleanup there.

The other four locations ranked in order of vandalism hotspots following Ponderosa Park are Pine Nursery Park, Drake Park, Miller’s Landing, and Rockridge Park. Vandalism also has been reported at Al Moody Park, Harmon Park, Columbia Park, Pioneer Park and Farewell Bend Park.

The park steward team has already filed 161 vandalism reports.

“This year alone, we've spent more than $40,000 in staff time and resources in order to address vandalism and graffiti, and last year, the entire year, we only spent $24,000,” Brown said.

Brown encourages community remembers to report vandalism so the district can clean it up as quickly as possible.