Pueblo West Parks and Recreation says the Civic Center Skate Park is facing a turning point after four incidents of vandalism, including one that left nearly half the park tagged with graffiti.
“At least 40% of the park was graffiti that we had to paint over,” said Carol Cosby, Director of Parks and Recreation.
The most recent vandalism occurred on June 28. Cosby said maintenance staff had to return again soon after, because “it didn’t even last a day.” Crews worked more than 14 hours on July 2 to repaint the park before the Fourth of July holiday, but not all damage could be repaired in time.
“They were really discouraged. They worked really hard,” Cosby said. “And it wasn’t just one guy. We had three people out here, painting, taping.”
She acknowledged that art and expression are important, but said public parks must remain welcoming to everyone.
“Graffiti is an art, but not in a public park on our skateboard facility,” Cosby said. “Yes, everybody has their own art and culture that they have, but this is provided for all residents who might not see the same culture that they do.”
Security cameras at the park captured footage of the incident, and that video has been turned over to the Pueblo County Sheriff’s Office. In the meantime, the department is taking additional steps.
“We are actually asking the sheriff’s department to do extra patrol in the park,” Cosby said. “We’ve already been on extra patrol watch, and then that’s what we’re looking at right now.”
If the vandalism continues, Cosby said the district may be forced to reduce the park’s hours, limiting access to 7:00 a.m. to 3:30 p.m., when staff is present.
For Jesse and Angel Patrick, that change would cut into one of the few recreational spaces available to families in Pueblo West.
“Pueblo West itself doesn’t have a lot to offer for kids in general,” Jesse Patrick said. “So this is kind of one of the only things to do. Means a lot to us.”
Angel Patrick said they visit the Civic Center Skate Park because it’s typically quieter and safer than other parks in town.
“We choose this park over in town, because it’s quiet, less crime out here,” she said.
But when they arrived recently, the effects of the vandalism were hard to ignore, especially for their kids.
“When we got here, without even being told, my kids were reading it, they were curious,” Angel said. “It’s definitely questions we have to answer later to them. Hey, what was that? And some stuff’s not age appropriate that we want to answer yet. So it just kind of takes the kid away from our kid.”
A reduction in hours would make things even harder for their family.
“That definitely eliminates, like, less busy hours,” Angel said. “So then all of us are crammed here together. I mean, it’s a bummer already that the splash pad’s got shorter hours. It limits what we can do in the summer with our kids.”
Cosby is asking the community to report any suspicious activity.
“If you see or know something, report it to the Pueblo County Sheriff’s Office,” she said.
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