Festus officials are asking the public to keep an eye on the Santa House at Schneider Park after it was vandalized sometime Monday night or early this morning (Dec. 10-11).
Lights on small Christmas tree-like structures were damaged, as was the timer for the lights on the 22-foot-tall artificial tree at Schneider Park – a small plot of land at the intersection of Main and Mill streets, park superintendent Larry Crites said.
He said his department routinely inspects the Santa House area and everything was OK there on Monday.
“We know the lights were working because I had them checked out Monday,” he said. “According to a couple of people we talked to, about 8 or 8:30 p.m. (Monday) night the lights were working. When I passed by at 6:30 this morning, there was nothing on. I sent some of the guys to check it out.”
Parks and Recreation Department staff members promptly fixed the damage, he said.
“It was, maybe, $100 or better to fix,” Crites said. “We put in new lights for the little Christmas trees and replaced the timer for the lights on the big Christmas tree.”
He said the area around the Santa House, which was established in 2014, had never before been vandalized and he hopes the public will help police to protect it.
“We called police and told them to keep an eye on it,” Crites said.
Anyone with information about the vandalism is urged to call Festus Police at 636-937-3646.
The Festus City Council approved the creation of Schneider Park in September 2010. The property owner, John Schneider Jr. of Festus, is leasing the property to the city for $120 a year for as long as he lives. The property will be donated to the city after his death, staff said today.