FRUSTRATED Dennington Recreation Reserve user groups are calling on thieves to return a $700 sponsor sign as brazen vandalism runs rampant.
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Dennington Cricket Club president Mick Howley said the sign, which was part of the club's sponsorship with fast food chain KFC, had been removed from the oval's perimeter fence in the latest act of hooliganism to hit the venue.
Mr Howley said vandalism - white paint sprayed over a shed, shattered glass on the netball courts, a broken fence and sign, rubbish dumping and car burnouts - had been a problem for about three years.
He said frustration was bubbling among all of the reserve's user groups.
"We want to get some upgrades done at the oval and it's hard to move forward with those when there's all this vandalism going on," Mr Howley said.
We want to get some upgrades done at the oval and it's hard to move forward with those when there's all this vandalism going on.
- Mick Howley
"We can't guarantee new things won't get vandalised. Dennington is growing as a community - the footy-netball club and the cricket club are getting along really well - and it's just a shame that both the clubs' hard work is being treated this way."
Mr Howley said the club encouraged the perpetrator of the stolen sign to return it. He suspected the same person responsible for the sign had also looted part of an irrigator.
"If they feel guilty and would like to return it, there'd be no questions asked," he said. "But my hopes of that happening are pretty slim. The head of the sprinkler that's gone missing too, you can't use that on a sprinkler at home. Someone has done it to be a pest.
"Jamie Fogarty, our curator, spends countless hours up there rolling the wicket, unpaid hours of work as a volunteer... That's just very disappointing and frustrating."
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Dennington Football Netball Club president Anthony Dowd echoed Mr Howley's sentiments.
He said the recreation reserve's position and tree cover meant it was an easy target for want-to-be hoodlums.
"We're trying to do things up there to improve it for the community and it's just getting trashed," he said.
"It's getting to the stage now where something needs to be done. We need cameras up there or a big perimeter fence because once you're in there and you can't go anywhere, if someone turns up, it doesn't give them the confidence to be there and vandalise."
Mr Dowd called on members of the Dennington community to keep an eye on the reserve for suspicious activity.
Anyone with information is asked to contact Mr Howley on 0409 528 807.
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