Park Strife! Residents disgust at play area ‘mess’

Missing swings, dog mess, broken glass and even planks of wood with nails sticking out are what await you when you take your children to the play park.

The issue was raised on the popular ‘Only way is Ballymena Hey’ Facebook page, along with a number of pictures showing the park in the current state of disrepair.

The admin of the site asked: “Surely some of our rates could pay a few ‘retired’ people a small subsistence to keep an eye on the state of these facilities, or should the council or whoever’s responsible be doing more?”

The topic received a lot of responses and it’s clear that this is an ongoing problem in the area.

One local resident pointed out that despite the council doing their best to fix up and maintain the park, it is often vandalised.

They said: “I live in the area and it’s a disgrace. Council have gave up fixing it. As soon as they do. It’s wrecked again. I have two kids who are afraid to go to park cause of the hoods that hang about it who, I can safely say are not even from the area. If you say anything you just get a lot of abuse.”

It was highlighted that other parks in the borough, such as the People’s Park avoid being vandalised because they are securely locked up at night.

A council employee who was at the scene on Monday morning said that parks in the borough are checked every week.