LANSING, Mich. — Lansing police are still looking for two suspects caught on video dumping trash in Bancroft Park.
Doug Rademacher has been going to Bancroft park since 1975.
“Grew up Lansing Catholic and then I bought my first house over here on Cleveland and we brought the children here," Rademacher said. "Now we moved to the Groesbeck neighborhood. And so we still come here all the time.”
Since he retired 13 years ago, he's been picking up a bag of trash almost every day.
“I would just come in with an extra bag and pick up trash on my way through the park and throw it out in the dumpsters that we have," Rademacher said. "We used to have two now there's only one.”
So when a video of two men dumping a truck bed load of trash in the park surfaced, he wasn't that surprised.
“I was just excited that they actually had a camera nearby," Rademacher said. "I don't know if that was a someone visiting the park, but it was nice to see that actually caught someone doing it. Hopefully they do find those people. But there has been dumping here every year, regularly, almost every month.”
Lansing Parks and Rec Director Brett Kaschinske also said this is nothing new, but that doesn't make it less frustrating.
“There are proper places for trash and everyone knows that a park is not that and it's something that I think the residents take very personally, because this is public space that really is for recreational purposes and we all know that that is for our physical health and for mental health as well and you go out to the park to enjoy those things," Kaschinske said. "Then to see somebody that has willfully, you know, mess that up for people is very frustrating to our residents.”
Kaschinske said this time of the year employees are busy getting the parks ready for warmers weather and this incident takes away from their normal routine.
"So that's very frustrating," Kaschinske said. "It's a process that really doesn't need to take place. If individuals take that to the landfill or take it to dumpsters that they have access to to be able to put it in its proper place.”
Kaschinske said he appreciates people who voluntarily clean the parks.
“When you see two individuals messing that up, that hurts. That hurts people a lot and that's the frustration," Kaschinske said. "We're glad to see it because people have that passion for it, but we're also just as frustrated as all those people who are seeing it, because this is something that needs to stop.”
Kaschinske said if anyone suspects anything illegal in a Lansing park to contact the Lansing Police Department or the Parks and Rec Department if there's damage to park equipment.
Want to see more local news? Visit the FOX47News Website.
Stay in touch with us anytime, anywhere.
Sign up for newsletters emailed to your inbox.
Select from these options: Neighborhood News, Breaking News, Severe Weather, School Closings, Daily Headlines, and Daily Forecasts.
