Town trashed: How can this senseless damage be allowed to continue?

DRUG taking, shocking incidents of vandalism, graffiti and antisocial behaviour.

It’s a weekly occurrence in the Leongatha Railway Station precinct, upgraded and opened last November at a cost of more than $6 million but being trashed on a regular basis.

Last Friday April 17, the Sentinel-Times was taken on a tour of the carnage by a concerned local resident who asked to remain anonymous for fear of reprisals.

“There’s broken glass in and around the kids’ playground all the time,” he said.

“I call it ‘Jekyll and Hyde Park’. Like this during the day with kids and their parents enjoying the new playground and the community here for the monthly market but with groups of people making a mess over the weekend.

“They’re on the nangs (nitrous oxide), drugs and whatever else they can get their hands on, throwing around bottles, burning the bins, trashing the toilets and the station.

“There’s graffiti everywhere that keeps getting repainted whenever it’s removed.

“We’ve told the police who ask us to report it immediately we see something but they’re here most weekends,” he said, concerned police don’t have the manpower locally to deal with the problem.

“We asked about CCTV cameras, but they say someone has got to monitor it. I’d like to see some cameras put up that everyone could look at online.”

While we were surveying the damage, council’s contractors were back for their umpteenth visit, fixing the damage and trying to make it harder for the persistent vandals to repeat their attacks.

“Council is aware of the antisocial behaviour occurring at the Leongatha Railway Station, which has resulted in damage to community assets and placed an unnecessary burden on Council resources and ratepayer funds,” a South Gippsland Shire Council spokesperson said.

“The new playground is well used by local families and provides an important connection between the bus interchange, the Great Southern Rail Trail and the Leongatha CBD.

“However, the ongoing vandalism and behaviour in the area is disheartening and frustrating for both Council and the community. Council regularly liaises with Victoria Police and other agencies through the South Gippsland Local Safety Council and continues to advocate for increased attention to this issue.

“Repairs to damaged infrastructure have cost more than $50,000 to date, which have fortunately been largely covered by Council’s insurance arrangements.”

Other actions by the council include increased security patrols, reporting incidents of vandalism to police, reporting damage and security concerns for the station building to VicTrack, and investigating options for improved lighting.

Gippsland South MP Danny O’Brien has also been contacted about the issue, pointing to a general escalation in crime, not just impacting South Gippsland.

“Crime has risen dramatically across South Gippsland in the past few years and residents have a right to be concerned. I’ve had people raise the railway station precinct with me on a number of occasions,” Mr O’Brien said.

“Our local police do the best they can but they are under-resourced and under pressure, with 1500 unfilled vacancies around the state.

“That’s why The Nationals and Liberals have committed to employing 3000 new police to cover those vacancies and keep up with population growth, including in places like Leongatha.

“The community is also sick of the revolving door justice system that sees too many offenders repeatedly released on bail, only to go out and offend again - we will address that with new laws to tighten bail and ensure that if you break bail on a serious offence, you face jail.”

Neil Barrett, one of the organisers of the monthly Sunday market (third Sunday) in the Leongatha Railway Precinct, acknowledges it as an ongoing problem.

“We didn’t have to do it last weekend but we’re regularly clearing broken glass away and I’m aware of what they’ve done to the railway station,” Mr Barrett said.

“There’s graffiti everywhere, they’ve trashed the toilets and started fires. I feel sorry for the council,” he said.

Criminal damage is the second-most prolific crime category in both South Gippsland and Bass Coast, behind breaches of family violence orders.

Police have been asked for comment.

If you do witness antisocial behaviour or vandalism, call ‘000’ immediately. You can also make a report anonymously to Crimestoppers Victoria on 1800 333 000.