Newswatch 16’s Valeria Quiñones spoke with the president of the community’s neighborhood association about what they’re doing to combat this.
SCRANTON, Pa. — What should be a peaceful neighborhood gathering spot in the Green Ridge section of Scranton is instead showing signs of destruction. President of the Green Ridge Neighborhood Association, Laura Agostini, says vandals recently targeted Sturges Park on N. Washington Avenue — what locals call Pretzel Park — for a second time.
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“There was a bunch of beer cans, and these two trees had been knocked over. The city planted these trees in the past year or two. I don’t remember, and they’ve been destroyed,” said Laura Agostini, president of the Green Ridge Neighborhood Association.
A park bench was also moved into the center garden, which trampled plants and flowers that Agostini says volunteers work hard to plant and maintain.
“But it takes effort and money for us to come out and clean, and mulch, and plant flowers, and we don’t want to see it destroyed,” Agostini said.
Agostini says keeping the park looking its best requires the city’s upkeep and takes countless volunteer hours throughout the year.
“We also hold various events here, where we have a Christmas tree lighting, and Easter egg hunt, so we all want to maintain it because this is used by many of the neighbors. It’s a great place to bring the kids to ride their bikes.”
The association recently spoke with the city about installing security cameras.
“There are cameras installed at Crowley Park, but we’ve been told by the city that we don’t have enough crime and that we don’t need them here,” explained Agostini.
Now, neighbors are left repairing the damage once again while hoping the vandalism comes to an end.
“But, we’re experiencing more and more problems, and we really think having cameras here in the park will help deter it,” said Agostini.
Agostini says the association will continue maintaining the park and encourages residents to report suspicious activity.