ST. PAUL - The bill to repair a number of broken windows at Town of St. Paul facilities late last month is proving to be significant.
Some time during the night of May 25 or early morning hours of May 26, a number of Town owned buildings were hit by vandals.
"The Town was the recipient of some fairly major vandalism during the evening of Wednesday, May 25. The worst building that has been recorded this far is the Tourist Information Centre. Large chunks of asphalt have been thrown through multiple sections of the glass that surround the building," confirmed Sarah Burton, executive assistant with the Town of St. Paul.
It only takes a drive past the facility, which is the UFO looking structure that adjoins the UFO landing pad near the Jaycee Ballpark, to notice the damage on the west facing section.
"A contractor has been arranged and what we know right now is that the glass required to fix the (Tourist Information Centre) is not easy to come across, and the repair is likely to take place no sooner than two or three weeks," says Burton.
The plywood in place of glass that is being used temporarily will likely still be in place when the Centerfield Music Festival takes place on June 16 and 17.
"This (timeline) puts us well into June and could very well mean an eyesore for the Centerfield Music Festival and even potentially into Canada Day," says Burton. The Alberta Media Arts Alliance Society is also hosting a media arts conference in St. Paul from June 30 to July 3.
"We will do everything we can, including making the temporary repair as appealing as possible," she adds.
But, it wasn't just the Tourist Information Centre that was targeted. Other facilities including the CAP Arena door, the Clancy Richard Arena window above the doors and the north side of the St. Paul Municipal Library by the multi-purpose room were also damaged.
"RCMP were contacted and Parks and Rec staff were onsite for the cleanup and interim repair. As of right now, all indicators point in the direction of an inevitable insurance claim as the damage to the (Tourist Information Centre) alone is quite significant," said Burton, on June. 1.
The Tourism Information Centre has since reopened with a temporary fix to the windows.
St. Paul RCMP confirmed they responded to a call of mischief on May 26, with multiple windows being smashed at several locations in the recreation area on the west side of town.
"Extensive damage was done to the landing pad (information centre)," said Cpl. Rowena Shea. "Nothing (was) taken and no entry gained."
Video Surveillance has been requested from neighbouring businesses and Portage College.
"As a result of recent complaints of vandalism to the property, police have increased patrols and monitoring of the area," said Shea.
St. Paul RCMP are looking to the public to help track down those who may be responsible for the vandalism and would like to remind the public to call in any suspicious activity,
Anyone who witnessed suspicious activity in the area during the early morning hours of May 26, 2022 or who has information about the incident, is asked to contact the St. Paul RCMP Detachment at 780-645-8870. Information can also be provided anonymously through Crime Stoppers by calling 1-800-222-TIPS (8477).
An investigation is ongoing.
