TINA L. SCOTT
EDITOR
New cameras providing 24/7 surveillance of Normal Park, including the Gazebo and the all-access playground, were installed the first week of November, said Dustin Brown, Information Technology Manager for the City of Merrill.
Dan Wendorf, Merrill Area Parks and Recreation Director, confirmed the camera installation was completed on Nov. 3, 2022, and is in direct response to vandalism at the park.
The all-access playground at Normal Park in Merrill, which opened in October 2019 alongside the picture-perfect Gazebo at the park, was the result of a nine-year plan by the Merrill Optimist Club, extensive volunteer hours, contributions from Merrill area businesses, and a grant from the Bierman Family Foundation. At a total cost of nearly $300,000 (which would have been even more without assistance from the community), the playground is frequently used and highly visible, and yet it, along with other playgrounds, bathrooms, and park properties in Merrill, have been the recent target of vandals.
In reference to vandalism, “We’ve had way too much in way too many locations all year long,” Wendorf said. Specifically in Normal Park, “it has been vandalized dozens of times causing damage to the new playground, restrooms, Gazebo, etc.”
“We’ve had vandalism just about everywhere this year, and we cannot afford to keep paying to fix/replace/repair all of the damage all of the time, so we need to try and crack down,” he said.
Merrill Police Chief Corey Bennett confirmed. “We’ve had a smattering of vandalism throughout some parks this past year. There have been some arrests or citations for specific events at Stange’s, and maybe some at Normal. Certainly not all events,” he said. Unresolved events are still under investigation.
Over the summer, a blue egg-shaped piece of playground equipment at the park was broken off and is now unusable. That one piece of equipment costs $2,000 to replace, said Randy Wixon, a member of the Merrill Optimist Club who was instrumental in helping with the all-access playground.
Without cameras, some damage can be difficult to isolate. For instance, “the Normal Park playground equipment has been hard to prove it’s not improper use vs. over use vs. criminal damage,” Bennett said. “Looking at the hardware that was broken, it was almost impossible to determine it just didn’t fail on its own.”
“On the same subject, there have been clear acts of vandalism, too,” he said. Railings on the Gazebo being broken off are one such example, and whether deliberate acts or as the result of horseplay, the new video surveillance will certainly help resolve those kinds of cases, Bennett added.
Vandalism is difficult to remedy, Wendorf said. “… It starts at home with families knowing where their children are and what they are doing. Merrill Police Department can only cover so much ground throughout the course of their shifts, and we haven’t had very many people call the Police Department when they have observed people doing the wrong thing in our parks.”
“[Vandalism] is something that every community deals with, and we have been dealing with it for a very long time,” he added. It just varies from year to year, he said.
Due to the ongoing issues, there is a plan to get cameras at multiple parks, Bennett said.
“We asked for cameras in two other parks through the 2023 budgetary process,” Wendorf confirmed, “but that hasn’t been finalized yet,” he said at the time of the interview. “If we don’t receive funding for the two other locations, we will have to wait until the next budget cycle.”
Merrill residents can thank the Merrill Optimist Club for the installation of the new cameras at Normal Park, as they were entirely funded by the Merrill Optimists, Wendorf confirmed.
Though not cheap, they were a necessary addition to the park to keep the park safe and to protect the community’s investment for the benefit of the community, Wixon said. The network of cameras installed can also be expanded if additional cameras are warranted in the future.
As a reminder, anyone who witnesses acts of vandalism or inappropriate behavior of any kind on park property is asked to please call the Merrill Police Department immediately.
Cameras installed at Normal Park to crack down on vandalism
TINA L. SCOTT
EDITOR
New cameras providing 24/7 surveillance of Normal Park, including the Gazebo and the all-access playground, were installed the first week of November, said Dustin Brown, Information Technology Manager for the City of Merrill.
Dan Wendorf, Merrill Area Parks and Recreation Director, confirmed the camera installation was completed on Nov. 3, 2022, and is in direct response to vandalism at the park.
The all-access playground at Normal Park in Merrill, which opened in October 2019 alongside the picture-perfect Gazebo at the park, was the result of a nine-year plan by the Merrill Optimist Club, extensive volunteer hours, contributions from Merrill area businesses, and a grant from the Bierman Family Foundation. At a total cost of nearly $300,000 (which would have been even more without assistance from the community), the playground is frequently used and highly visible, and yet it, along with other playgrounds, bathrooms, and park properties in Merrill, have been the recent target of vandals.
In reference to vandalism, “We’ve had way too much in way too many locations all year long,” Wendorf said. Specifically in Normal Park, “it has been vandalized dozens of times causing damage to the new playground, restrooms, Gazebo, etc.”
“We’ve had vandalism just about everywhere this year, and we cannot afford to keep paying to fix/replace/repair all of the damage all of the time, so we need to try and crack down,” he said.
Merrill Police Chief Corey Bennett confirmed. “We’ve had a smattering of vandalism throughout some parks this past year. There have been some arrests or citations for specific events at Stange’s, and maybe some at Normal. Certainly not all events,” he said. Unresolved events are still under investigation.
Over the summer, a blue egg-shaped piece of playground equipment at the park was broken off and is now unusable. That one piece of equipment costs $2,000 to replace, said Randy Wixon, a member of the Merrill Optimist Club who was instrumental in helping with the all-access playground.
Without cameras, some damage can be difficult to isolate. For instance, “the Normal Park playground equipment has been hard to prove it’s not improper use vs. over use vs. criminal damage,” Bennett said. “Looking at the hardware that was broken, it was almost impossible to determine it just didn’t fail on its own.”
“On the same subject, there have been clear acts of vandalism, too,” he said. Railings on the Gazebo being broken off are one such example, and whether deliberate acts or as the result of horseplay, the new video surveillance will certainly help resolve those kinds of cases, Bennett added.
Vandalism is difficult to remedy, Wendorf said. “… It starts at home with families knowing where their children are and what they are doing. Merrill Police Department can only cover so much ground throughout the course of their shifts, and we haven’t had very many people call the Police Department when they have observed people doing the wrong thing in our parks.”
“[Vandalism] is something that every community deals with, and we have been dealing with it for a very long time,” he added. It just varies from year to year, he said.
Due to the ongoing issues, there is a plan to get cameras at multiple parks, Bennett said.
“We asked for cameras in two other parks through the 2023 budgetary process,” Wendorf confirmed, “but that hasn’t been finalized yet,” he said at the time of the interview. “If we don’t receive funding for the two other locations, we will have to wait until the next budget cycle.”
Merrill residents can thank the Merrill Optimist Club for the installation of the new cameras at Normal Park, as they were entirely funded by the Merrill Optimists, Wendorf confirmed.
Though not cheap, they were a necessary addition to the park to keep the park safe and to protect the community’s investment for the benefit of the community, Wixon said. The network of cameras installed can also be expanded if additional cameras are warranted in the future.
As a reminder, anyone who witnesses acts of vandalism or inappropriate behavior of any kind on park property is asked to please call the Merrill Police Department immediately.