Volunteers raise hands to help clean up Britt David Park after graffiti discovered
Columbus Parks and Recreation staff are preparing to clean up Britt David Park Wednesday after it was recently vandalized with graffiti.
Officials with the West Georgia Dixie and Pioneer baseball leagues notified the department over the weekend about the graffiti and a police report was filed, Parks and Rec Director Holli Browder told the Ledger-Enquirer Tuesday.
Graffiti was found outside and inside the bathrooms, baseball and softball facilities, and on park signs. Parks and Rec sent staff members to the area Tuesday to assess the damage, Browder said.
Supplies have been ordered and staff members will start the clean-up on Wednesday by pressure washing what they can and painting what they can’t pressure wash.
The West Georgia Dixie Baseball League expressed disappointment about the vandalism in a statement posted to Facebook Monday.
“We are here to provide a service so that our youth can learn valuable lessons in life and to have people deface, vandalize and steal our property really makes us mad,” the post reads.
‘Not something that citizens want to see’
Phil Clark, fields and grounds manager for West Georgia Dixie, said he decided to check his league’s facilities after seeing a Facebook post on Dec. 14 showing graffiti at Pioneer League’s facilities.
“We’ve been having our own issues between our golf cart being stolen and our concession stand broken into on Thursday night,” he said.
Clark said he saw the graffiti on the press box before he reached the baseball fields.
“And I knew at the moment that it was not just an isolated incident to Pioneer, but it was all of Britt David Park,” he said.
Once the police report was filed, the league’s board started reaching out to community members to help with the clean-up. But before the plan was finalized, volunteers were already asking how they could assist.
“Your first reaction is always to be upset,” he said. “But I think this is a really good example of how our community and our park in general can take a negative situation and it becomes a positive.”
Parks and Rec is working with a short staff and struggling to fill positions because of the pandemic, Browder said, so this vandalism will take employees away from day-to-day operations.
“It casts a negative light on that park and on that area,” she said. “And it’s just not something that citizens want to see.”
Cleaning up the vandalism also requires money from the department’s budget. Rather than being used to clean graffiti, the funding could be used to do other projects in parks across Columbus, Browder said.
Volunteers who want to assist in the clean-up or other Parks and Rec projects can reach out to the department at 706-225-4640 for more information. Residents who would like to volunteer on a long-term basis should visit the department’s website and complete a volunteer packet.
“It’s imperative for us that people help us take care of the park and take pride in our parks, and if they see something to say something,” Browder said. “Let us know or call the police if they see something going on.”
What happens next?
The kids who play in West Georgia Dixie are ages 13-17 and the baseball league provides a safe place for kids to hang out, Clark said.
Around 70-100 kids are due to be playing on the field Feb. 7, he said. The plan is to have the facilities cleaned and get new signage before their return.
The league has had conversations with city officials about getting surveillance cameras placed at the park.
“I don’t think it’s a new thing for community members of Columbus to see the rise in crime,” he said. “For us, the whole reason we do our league is to be able to keep these kids coming onto the field.”
