Noosa Council is facing an “unnecessary” bill of nearly $10,000 to replace stolen fence panels and two gates from the Hinterland Adventure Playground in Cooroy.
The 27 powder-coated fence panels were removed from their posts on Sunday night.
Council’s acting infrastructure services director Shaun Walsh is seeking community help to find the culprits.
“Our staff found them missing after a routine inspection,” he said.
Two gates were also taken and Mr Walsh said it appeared to be a well-orchestrated operation.
“It’s quite obvious that whoever took the equipment would have needed a utility or trailer, so we really hope someone has seen something,” he said.
“Fence panels are expensive and easily tradeable on the market, so we suspect that is why they may have been taken.
“We really need the community’s help, so if they have any CCTV footage or saw anything to contact police.”
Related story: ‘Bringing joy: adventure playground up and running
Mr Walsh said such a senseless and blatant act had a profound impact on the community.
“It’s not just the disruption to the playground and the potential risk to safety for those using the facility, but also the time and effort for our staff to carry out the repairs,” he said.
“This is likely to be close to a $10,000 cost for council and something that is completely unnecessary.
“Our staff are looking at some temporary measures to ensure safety of playground users, however we hope to have a replacement fence in place within a few weeks.”
Council estimates vandalism to public infrastructure costs the community about $60,000 annually.
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Meanwhile, Cooroy resident and Cooroy Area Residents Association president Rod Ritchie is also calling on the community to help find the offenders.
“Please help find the stolen playground fence panels,” he said.
“They were taken from the creek side of the adventure playground and have been brazenly removed. Stolen, in other words.
“These were in place to stop young kids from wandering into the creek zone.
“Noosa Council is estimating the repair bill is more than $8000, and parents are concerned that the job needs starts soon because small kids are prone to exploring the creek bed.
“Could we all keep an eye out for them and report any information to the Cooroy Police.”
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