LUCERNE, Calif. – County officials are asking for the community's help in keeping an eye on local parks after several vandalism cases in recent weeks did expensive damage to park facilities in Lucerne.
The Lake County Public Services Office – which oversees the county Parks Department – reported that the incidents occurred at Alpine Park and Lucerne Harbor Park, both located on Highway 20.
Public Services Director Kim Clymire said he and his staff were “very frustrated and disappointed with the senseless vandalism” that occurred at the two county facilities.
During the week of Feb. 15 someone smashed a windshield on one of the contractor’s vehicles who was working on improvements to Alpine Park, located near Second Avenue, Public Services reported.
Then, during week on Feb. 25, someone used a crow bar to pry open the door on the Alpine Park restroom door and the pump room door. The prize: a case of toilet paper, according to Public Services.
Both doors were damaged, with Public Services estimating that repairs will cost approximately $200 for each door.
But the worst – and most expensive – instance of damage occurred last week, on March 2, at Lucerne Harbor Park, located further down Highway 20 near Eighth Avenue.
That's when officials said a 40-foot-long courtesy dock with a steel frame was cut in half. It's surmised that the suspect used a portable saw.
Repair of the steel dock is estimated to cost well over $1,000, Public Services reported.
Clymire called it “a sad state of affairs for the community and very disheartening” to have his staff find deliberate and costly damage to the county's park facilities.
“In light of the current budget crises we are facing, we have fewer dollars for improvements and maintenance and vandalism is a total waste of our taxpayer’s money,” said Clymire, whose department oversees 22 county parks and almost 2,000 acres.
He said his staff has been working diligently on county park maintenance and improvements projects for all residents' and visitors' enjoyment.
Clymire said he's spoken to Sheriff Frank Rivero, who pledged to do all he can to assist with patrolling the parks. Clymire said he appreciated Rivero's “zero tolerance position” on vandalism.
There was evidence of a stepped up law enforcement presence at Lucerne Harbor Park during this reporter's visit to the park on March 3, as a Sheriff's Marine Patrol boat cruised in to make a pass through the harbor before heading back out on the lake.
This isn't the first time Lucerne's parks have been damaged by vandals.
During 2007, following the completion of the $200,000 restroom facility at Alpine Park – the same facility whose doors were just damaged with a crow bar – it was damaged several times with graffiti and the restroom doors being pulled off the hinges, as Lake County News has reported.
At that time 17 pop-up sprinkler heads in the park's lawn area had been broken off.
Other parks in recent years have been targeted by vandalism, including Hinman Park in Nice. Last year, some oak trees on the county-owned property on Mt. Konocti also were cut down, according to Clymire.
Clymire asked anyone who witnesses a vandalism or hears accounts of damage to county parks and facilities to call the Lake County Sheriff’s non-emergency dispatch at 707-263-2690 or, in case of emergency, to all 911.
E-mail Elizabeth Larson at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. . Follow Lake County News on Twitter at http://twitter.com/LakeCoNews , on Facebook at http://www.facebook.com/pages/Lake-County-News/143156775604?ref=mf and on YouTube at http://www.youtube.com/user/LakeCoNews .
