Vandals carved up sports fields at this SLO County high school ’5 or 6 times’

Unknown vandals in vehicles have accessed Coast Union High School’s campus — carving out deep tire track cuts in the football field, attacking the recently re-sodded practice fields twice and smearing the varsity baseball field.

They also spun circles in the bus parking lot on campus, although no damage was done to the buses.

The trespassers used a car to swerve wildly in circles, cutting dirt doughnuts in the turf, but have also done damage with a motorcycle.

Although the most recent vandalism occurred on July 4, “This has been happening five or six times now,” Coast Unified School District operations director David Bidwell said. “We’ve had people come in and tear up the fields with their vehicles. So it wasn’t just a one- time shot.”

The most recent intrusions began about two weeks after graduation.

Bidwell won’t speculate on who the vandal or vandals are. “Whoever it is, they know this campus. They are familiar with it,” he said.

Video surveillance cameras in the bus parking areas did not capture images of the interlopers because the “cameras went dark” between 8 p.m. and 8 a.m. on July 4 – likely the time during which the damage was done, Adams explained.

How are the trespassers getting on to the campus?

It’s unlikely they passed through the bus parking lot gate, which is open only during specific, controlled parts of the day, allowing agriculture students access to tend their animals.

But there are other entry points allowing intruders to do their damage. A dirt road behind the campus — and access between Leffingwell High School and the baseball field — has apparently allowed vandals entrée as well.

The vandalism comes amid a spate of similar attacks on San Luis Obispo County school campuses.

On July 9, two people broke into a classroom at Grover Beach Elementary School and caused significant damage, according to the Grover Beach Police Department. The break-in occurred the same week racist and sexual graffiti markings were sprayed onto the upper wall of the school.

Coast Union High School aims to deter vandalism

Water-filled barriers will be rented and installed as early as this week, which will prevent access to the dirt road behind the campus.

Those barriers will be a temporary solution until the maintenance staff receives bids and installs the necessary fencing, according to Donald Adams, Coast Unified director of maintenance, operations and transportation.

Adams hopes to have sturdy fencing in place by the end of July.

In the meantime, “We have installed steel posts and chains at access points adjacent to our playing fields,” Bidwell said.

The expense to the district is not known, but Adams believes it will cost “several thousand dollars to get the fencing done that needs to be done.” “And of course that purchase has to go through the approval process,” he added.

“In certain areas we’re looking at a four-foot fence with some pedestrian gates and maybe double gates to bring vehicles through that need access,” he said.

The lawn area between the last classroom and the bus parking area — which is now blocked with back-to-back district vehicles — will be permanently closed off with a six-foot-high fence, Adams said.

As to law enforcement protection, the San Luis Obispo County Sheriff’s Office deputy who serves as Coast Union’s resource officer has been asked to make additional patrols around the campus, according to Adams.

“The way that we looked at the whole situation — it is impossible to keep everybody out of here,” Bidwell said. “So what are we going to do? We’re going to put fencing up, we’re going to put lights up, we’re going to use cameras. Those three things we believe can mitigate this problem.”

Do you know who damaged sports fields?

Coast Union’s principal, Scott Ferguson, said it is “extremely frustrating that someone in our community would disrespect the school property on multiple occasions.”

The campus has traditionally been left open to allow “community members to come and use our fields,” Ferguson explained in an email. “But now we have to lock up and fortify our facilities because of these events.”

Andrew Crosby is athletic director and head football coach at Coast Union.

“I encourage anyone that knows about this activity to come forward,” he said in an email.

At the very least, Crosby asked that someone who knows the interloper should “educate the individual about respecting public property that is funded through local tax money.”

Crosby praised the grounds and maintenance crews who “have done a great job with our facilities.” They have moved “swiftly and efficiently at mitigating vandalism in the future,” he said

Those with information about the vandalism can contact Crosby at acrosby@coastusd.org. Ferguson’s email is sferguson@coastusd.org.