The family of a Fife teenager who had a skate park built in his memory after he tragically died say they are “heartbroken” after the facility was repeatedly trashed by vandals.
Broken glass, drinks cans and debris from a ripped up litter bin that was set alight has left Stefan Drummond Memorial Skate Park, at Riverside Park in Glenrothes, unusable on numerous occasions in recent months.
The park was built in 2008 after a fundraising campaign by the family of skater, Stefan Drummond, who tragically died aged 15 after an alleged fight in the town centre in June 2005.
Stefan’s mum, Margaret Glen, said she is disgusted by those who have wrecked the popular facility that was created in her son’s name.
“It’s very frustrating”, she added.
The park wasn’t just a memorial to her son but a facility for the next generation of kids to have a safer environment to enjoy the sport that Stefan loved the most.
She said: “It saddens me that some of these kids feel the need to trash it every weekend.
“We didn’t have this problem before so why now?
“We can’t blame the council as they do their best as it was covered in glass again last weekend and then cleaned up.
“If this continues then the council may just stop maintaining it and close it down.
“That would be devastating for me as his mother and the community as a whole.”
Sara Jones, Stefan’s cousin, said it was “absolutely heartbreaking” to see the park in such a distressed state.
She added: “Stef loved being on his skateboard and spent a lot of time at the old ramps the town park originally had.
“The family and the community spent a long time fundraising and to see the park now in the mess it is in is just heartbreaking.
“I’d ask parents to have a chat with their children, maybe look up who Stef was and what the park means to so many of us.”
The damage has brought widespread anger from locals after photos of the problems were posted on social media.
Kevin Lafferty said his partner’s daughter wanted to play at the skate park and couldn’t because of the vandalism.
“There was broken bottles everywhere, it is absolutely ridiculous and Fife Council should be cleaning this up.
“Younger children and dogs could get seriously hurt.”
Calls have now been made to introduce CCTV to the park in order to deter further incidents and catch those responsible.
Despite the current pandemic and ongoing lockdown restrictions, the park continues to be a popular meeting point for local youths, and an area to consume alcohol.
Dawn Jamieson, team manager of Fife Council’s Safer Communities, confirmed that the team is aware of the vandalism and fire-raising in the skate park.
She said: “Vandalism of any kind is unacceptable and a blight on our communities.
“We are stepping up our patrols in this area and working with police to help combat this anti-social behaviour.”
