Vandals cause $2000 worth of damage to Far North toilet blocks

This segment of graffiti, sprayed on the wall of a public Far North toilet block, was part of $2000 worth of vandalism carried out across the district recently.

Some vandals have left a trail of destruction in Far North public toilets, including racist graffiti and soil dumped into toilets and urinals.

Vandals targeted a number of Far North toilets over the holiday period, causing around $2000 of damage, and Far North District Council wants help to catch them.

Toilets at Te Tii Beach, Paihia were vandalised last weekend, when all the toilets and urinals were filled with soil or potting mix.

Two contractors had to be engaged by the council to clean up the mess, which meant the facilities couldn’t be used by the hundreds of cruise ship visitors and other tourists enjoying the holiday hotspot.

Over Christmas, public toilets at Ahipara and Centennial Park in Kaitāia had locks broken on two occasions, and both were sprayed with graffiti utilising racist language. Clean-up and repair costs in each case will be met by the ratepayer.

“This is incredibly disappointing for our communities to see our public facilities treated like this,” says council group manager of delivery and operations Trent Blakeman.

Vandals filled public toilets in Paihia with soil, and Far North District Council wants the public's help to catch them.

“It’s a particularly bad look when we are at the height of our tourist season, with thousands of extra visitors in our district who need to use these important facilities.”

If anyone has any information on these or any other instances of public facilities being vandalised, please get in touch with the council via 0800 920 029 or contact the police.