Bridgeville officials hope that security cameras at Chartiers Park will stop graffitists, arsonists, wire thieves, trashcan kickers, bathroom artists, illegal dumpers, and vandals of all stripes from practicing their destructive pastimes in the vicinity.
As of last month, the borough had installed 10 cameras at the park at a cost of $11,500 [PDF]. There’s an order in process for additional, at the request of the Bridgeville police department.
“I expect the cameras at Chartiers Park to be more of a preventative tool rather than something that we have to use [after a crime is committed],” said police chief Chad King.
Chartiers Park in recent years has been the target of several brazen acts of stupidity, like the time that somebody set the swings on fire or the incident where somebody pried open the scoreboard and ripped out the electronics components.
The park has also been a popular spot for illegal dumping, according to the Tribune-Review.
Fixing that kind of damage is costly. Un-doing a single act of vandalism has cost the borough upward of $4,000 in the past.
Security cameras around the borough have helped solve numerous crimes in the recent years, including several robberies.
Last week, traffic cameras helped Bridgeville police identify a driver who hit a decorative light pole, causing $7,000 in damage, and then drove home.
“We’re grateful for the cameras that have been put throughout the borough.” King said.