Vandals break pieces of all-accessible playground equipment at Southside Park in Tyler

TYLER, Texas (KLTV) - Southside Park in Tyler, completed with all-accessible playground equipment for kids with various special mobility needs, has been damaged by vandalism, according to the Tyler Department of Parks and Rec.

Southside Park is located just south of the intersection of Shiloh Road and Donnybrook Avenue. The popular park features picnic areas, restrooms, pavilions, a large playground area, and hike and bike trails. New ADA accessible playground equipment was installed in 2019 thanks to Tyler Area Ambucs. You can watch our story about that installation here.

In January 2023, the men’s bathrooms were damaged by vandals. Unfortunately, this week, some of the new playground equipment for the kids with mobility issues was damaged and signage was thrown over the bridge into the creek. Trash cans were overturned, and garbage was scattered around the park, according to the post on Tyler Parks and Rec’s social media page.

“This playground took a long time to build and was only able to happen with many community partners and sponsors! To fix the broken pieces will not be cheap and to clean up the park was very time consuming. We hope to find those responsible for the damages but it will take the community to help us,” they wrote to close the post.

If you have any information about who may have done this damage or have video of it, call Tyler Parks and Rec at (903) 531-1370 or the City of Tyler Police Department at (903) 531-1000.

PREVIOUS: Below is the video of the vandalism of the bathrooms at Southside Park in January.

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