Vandals damaged the public toilets along the Kāpiti Coast 27 times in a year, in one instance costing ratepayers $5000 for a smashed toilet pan, kicked-in door, and smashed glass in an accessible toilet.
By Justin Wong of Local Democracy Reporting
The Kāpiti Coast District Council said it spent up to $160,000 a year to fix damage at its community halls, changing rooms and public toilets. Some one-off repair bills reached $40,000.
In the 12 months to July, the council recorded 27 cases of damages to public toilets, including smashed toilet pans and purposely blocked pipes. Some were targeted more than once and led to closures of days or weeks, in some cases.
In one instance, vandals smashed the toilet pan, broke off the door handle, kicked in the door and scattered broken glass across the accessible toilet at Paraparaumu’s Mazengarb Hall Sports Complex, costing $5000 in repairs.
‘A real inconvenience for the public’
A senior official warned if vandalism continued, the council might not have enough money for repairs or to keep toilets open.
“Vandalism isn’t a one-off event. Unfortunately, it’s something our property team deals with week in, week out,” said Kelvin Irvine, the council’s property and facilities manager. On top of spending for repairs, it took “considerable” time to arrange contractors, co-ordinate repairs and install public notices before the facilities could reopen.
“These incidents are also a real inconvenience for the public.
“When you’re out enjoying one of our parks, reserves or community halls, the last thing you expect is to find the toilets closed because someone has wrecked them, or the windows have been smashed and there’s graffiti on the exterior of the building.”
The council asked witnesses of any vandalism or suspicious behaviour around community facilities to report it to the police.
– Local Democracy Reporting (LDR) is local body journalism co-funded by RNZ and NZ On Air