Whitchurch’s newly-appointed mayor said he was saddened and disappointed after public toilets which he pledged to re-open at his inaugural speech were vandalised again this week.
Councillor Alan Chesters said one of his priorities as mayor was to re-open the toilets at Jubilee Park.
But on Monday night vandals smashed fittings and sprayed graffiti in the toilet block.
Cllr Chesters said the town council had been trying to re-open the toilets for a number of years and would have to discuss what their next move would be, with the possibility of improving CCTV.
“I am saddened and disappointed by this latest attack on the toilets by mindless vandals,” he said. “We are trying to improve facilities for people in the town, but keep suffering setbacks.
“We have a problem with gangs of people drinking in the area and one night the police collected over 100 bottles. We have reported it to police who have said they are going to increase patrols.”
The council has recently refurbished the children’s play area and also wants to provide further seating and sheltered areas, sports equipment and new goalposts for the football pitch.
Residents have voiced their frustrations that the Harry Richards Memorial Gardens in the park are locked when they want to visit them, the toilets have remained closed, and say there is a lack of seats in the park.
“The closure of the park’s toilets is an ongoing complaint and a priority is to get them open,” he said. “We have taken ownership of them from the former North Shropshire District Council. However, they were vandalised just before the handover and again this week, and have now got to be refurbished. We are awaiting estimates and expect it to cost between £2,000 and £3,000 which we, the town council, have got to pay.
“I hope they will be open this summer, and they will be locked at night using electronic timer locks.”
Cllr Chesters added he hoped the Harry Richards Memorial Garden, which has also been subject to vandalism attacks in the past, will be open again in the next few weeks.
