tack incident last month.
(Photo: Lauren Bayard)
We may have a serial trail vandal on our hands who’s out to cause flat tires and puncture wounds for folks using the popular Springwater Corridor Trail — and now the Parks department is working with the Police to track them down.
Last month we reported that vandals had spread hundreds of tacks on the trail. BikePortland reader Craig Harlow reported the incident saying that after he and several other riders got flats they fanned out and found “about 300 [tacks] strewn along 50 yards of the path.”
The location was just east of Powell Butte near the bridge at SE Circle Ave (around milepost 12 on the trail).
Then yesterday, I got an email from City of Portland Parks department spokeswoman Beth Sorensen. She wanted to alert the community that they received a call that vandals had once again spread tacks on the trail. The location? Just east of Powell Butte within a mile or so of the incident last month.
Parks & Recreation staff responded immediately to the incident yesterday and had the tacks cleaned up before the evening rush of commuters. But I’m left wondering if this is these tacks have been put down by a serial cycling hater.
Sorensen says Parks’ public safety manager Mark Warrington is filing a police report today and he, along with park rangers and the Portland Police Bureau are working together on a plan to address the situation.
According to Sorensen, park rangers will comb the area and talk to people who might have witnessed the vandal in action and to find out if there have been other, unreported incidents. Warrington might also put up flyers offering a reward for information. “He [Warrington] wants to make it clear that this is something that won’t be tolerated.”
She added that, “Hopefully we’ll be able find the person or persons responsible, or at the very least make them aware that their actions are getting police attention.”
— If you spot any hazards on the trail call the Parks general maintenance number at (503) 823-1600 or notify a park ranger at (503) 823-1637. If you spot the crime in progress, call 911.