VANDALISM AND ANTI-social behaviour is continuing in a south Dublin housing estate despite recent investment by the local council in a CCTV and speaker system to discourage this kind of behaviour.
Local Sinn Féin councillor Mark Ward told TheJournal.ie that there is “a whole host of issues” with the playground including vandalism, illegal dumping and drug dealing.
CCTV was first installed in the Balgaddy playground in 2011 but it was upgraded in the last month. The new set-up includes five high resolution cameras and four voiceover speakers.
The footage is relayed to the County Hall in Tallaght where it is stored. South Dublin County Council said the equipment cost in the region of €20,000.
Just this week, the playground was again vandalised when a fire was lit under a climbing frame.
Ward said he was “extremely angry that despite the investment by the council of the instillation of the CCTV that this vandalism continues”.
“This behaviour has no place in our communities. The people carrying out this destruction have a total disregard for the vast majority of the residents in Balgaddy,” he said.
The playground is there for children to enjoy and for parents to go and chat with their neighbours, to get a bit of a community spirit. The vast majority of people in Balgaddy are good working class people who want to get on with their lives in a proper, reasonable way.
In a statement, South Dublin County Council said: “The council carries out inspections of the playground on a weekly basis and undertakes repairs to the equipment, where required. The council is aware of the recent vandalism.”
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