BELLEVUE, Neb. (KMTV) — Starting Monday, all Bellevue city park restrooms are closed for the season. Officials say the closures come after a wave of ongoing vandalism and graffiti discovered at several parks over the weekend, including Stonecroft and Washington Park.
The restrooms normally stay open through October, but the city says crews will need the extra time to repair the damage and winterize the facilities.
I spoke with a group of teens at Washington Park who say they've seen the vandalism first-hand.
"There has been blood on the wall, poop, pee and in the girls bathroom there is a mysterious liquid on the ceiling. You can get loads of diseases especially if someone already has a disease that makes it worse. And another thing is with everything on the floor people can slip, fall hit their head, get injured," said Charlotte a local teen who visits the park often with her friends.
Residents who frequently visit the parks say the closures will be a big inconvenience.
"That makes me so mad because I actually use the bathroom," said Zaylee.
"I live on the other side of Bellevue and I used to go to Stonecroft a lot and there was vandalism everywhere," said Hannah.
Julia Miller, a mother of two, says her family visits Stonecroft Park at least three to four times a week, and the closures will be especially hard for her 2-and-a-half-year-old who is potty training.
"We come here to let our kids play and we don't have to worry about things that are inappropriate, things that are messy," Miller said.
"It just makes it easier for everybody if they would just respect the property and realize that kids come here to play and we need those bathrooms and it would just be easier if they stayed open and public," Miller said.
The City is asking residents to help protect parks and facilities by reporting any suspicious activity or vandalism to the Bellevue Police Department.
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