By MARK TODD - Staff Writer - mtodd@starbeacon.com
HARPERSFIELD TOWNSHIP — Vandals armed with cans of black spray paint went on a rampage at the Harpersfield Covered Bridge Metropark, defacing signs and buildings with racial slurs, swastikas and obscenities.
According to frequent visitors to the park, the damage occurred Thursday night or early Friday morning. The park’s appearance sparked a handful of calls to the Star Beacon from outraged residents.
Numerous traffic signs, two restrooms and the park’s small concession stand were hit by vandals, and buildings on either side of the lengthy bridge were smeared with graffiti. Even the trunk of a tree was emblazoned with letters and symbols.
Some of the graffiti was done in yellow paint and appeared to have been applied prior to the latest attack. Charles Kohli, a spokeswoman for the Ashtabula County Metroparks system, which oversees the Harpersfield park, could not be reached for comment Friday afternoon.
Cliff Henry, a Harpersfield Township trustee, said Friday the park has been a frequent target of vandals, but problems “seemed to get worse of late,” particularly the past month.
Henry feared this week’s layoff of 16 Ashtabula County Sheriff’s Department deputies, and the subsequent decrease in patrols, may have emboldened vandals.
One end of the bridge was tagged in yellow paint, but otherwise the wooden structure escaped the onslaught. Ashtabula County Engineer Tim Martin, whose office is responsible for the covered bridges, said vandalism to the beloved spans is “relatively isolated.”
“Typically, it’s local kids,” he said.
The county highway department is no stranger to graffiti on its bridges, Martin said.
“It’s not one bridge more than the others,” he said. “We deal with it on a regular basis.”
The county has a variety of solutions and treatments it uses to scrub offensive messages from its bridges, Martin said. When paint is slapped on wooden covered bridges, sanding is sometimes an option, he said.
Despite best efforts, vandalism is inevitable, Martin said.
“It’s one of those things you come to expect,” he said.
