LEWISBURG (WVDN) – Three separate feces-related issues are hitting Lewisburg’s Dorie Miller and Hollowell parks, and city officials are looking to crack down on the vandalism, locked up pets, and bombs left for kids playing sports.
During the Tuesday, April 19, meeting of the Lewisburg City Council, Mayor Beverly White called for folks to leave the parks alone.
“People are spreading feces in our parks,” said White. “It is not appreciated; we spend a lot of money to have nice facilities. When we find out who it is, they will pay. Probably with community service, and it would be ironic to have to clean up what they mess up. I don’t care that it’s in the paper, because whoever’s doing it needs to stop. If you don’t have any more respect for yourself than that, then I won’t hide who you are.”
City Manager Misty Hill confirmed the Lewisburg Police Department was already looking into the incident.
“There are cameras in our parks,” said Hill. “This one played a big part in it, because we captured the three ladies vandalizing the shelter in Hollowell -”
“I wouldn’t call them ladies,” White said.
“The three individuals,” Hill continued with a laugh. “Our deputy chief and another officer, and [Public Works Director Tony Legg] have identified two now. We are going to request community service, at least eight hours of cleaning up the parks. It is quite frustrating – we don’t’ have a lot of money with coal severance to put it that, so it’s a lot of citizen’s money that are going in to support those parks. They are being vandalized pretty horrifically in the restrooms with, like the mayor said, lovely wall decorations of some feces. [Most recently] it was not feces, it looked like white, blobby shaving cream or paint.”
This is not, however, the only feces-related issue for city parks.
“People are [also] allowing their dogs off the leash, the dogs are making a mess on the fields, it’s becoming a nightmare for the kids,” explained council member Sarah Elkins. “They’re playing, they’re falling in waste. People aren’t cleaning up after them.”
Surprisingly, the field is not the only place dealing with this issue.
“I was shocked to hear that people lock their dogs up in the pickleball and skate park fence,” Elkins said. “They leave them in there as a dog park while they’re using the park, while they’re walking. The dogs are using the bathroom in there, and it’s making a huge mess to deal with.”
The pickleball courts while under construction in October 2021. |
As a result of this, Hill said, “we are on the verge of the city [administration] requesting [the Parks Committee, and Parks requesting to council, to eliminate animals at the parks because it is quite atrocious. I would be an upset parent if my kids slid into their face into a pile of poo. Our fenced in areas are not dog parks, they are actually for sports. An electric leash is not a leash, it has to be a physical leash.”
“We’re on the verge of having a no dogs in the park rule,” Elkins said. “It’s probably only a few people who are going to create a really unpleasant situation, where we don’t allow dogs in the parks anymore. If you see someone doing something like that, maybe say something.”
Lewisburg Chief of Police Chris Teubert confirmed he would be watching the area and would be writing tickets for anyone in violation of the leash law.
“There is a leash law we can enforce by ticket if they’re putting their dogs in the pickleball area and leaving them there,” said Teubert. “If someone sees that, let us know. With the cameras, we’ve already identified two from the vandalism today. We can actually go back and charge people for that.”
Council members also thanked city staff for taking care of the issue, from those having to clean the mess to law enforcement.
“Thank you all for your work on the parks, no matter what it is,” said council member Valerie Pritt. “We’re getting ready to hit all departments. It’s very frustrating to have this happen.”
“And it’s just the beginning of summer, with COVID kind of being a little bit behind us, kind of sort of, people will be enjoying our parks a lot more,” said council member Franklin Johnson.
“I’m just really begging people to quit defacing our parks,” White said. “It’s not right, it’s not fair, and it’s not respectful at all, to themselves or others.”
Mayor Beverly White (bottom right) speaks. Councilmember Sarah Elkins (center, virtual) gave an update from the Parks Committee. |
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