By Bonny Burrows
Calls for security upgrades to Pakenham’s Toomuc Reserve have heightened after thieves smashed their way into two volunteer-run sporting clubs’ rooms, leaving its junior players without club-purchased equipment and its committees without hundreds of dollars of fund-raised cash.
The Pakenham Junior Football Club (PJFC) and the Pakenham Pumas Baseball Club’s (PPBC) facilities, both at Toomuc Reserve, were targeted by thieves sometime during the night of Tuesday 13 June.
Cardinia Criminal Investigation Unit Detective Senior Sergeant Michael Van Der Heyden said that in a “pretty disgusting” act, thieves stole $500 in cash from the baseball club’s till and another $500 worth of alcohol drinks, while the neighbouring football club had children’s jumpers, merchandise, footballs, soft drinks and canteen food stolen.
It is believed that once the raiders smashed the security alarm they used a metal bar to get into the baseball club’s locked facilities.
The football clubrooms were also ransacked and holes were smashed in the internal plaster walls to gain access to change rooms and the office.
PPBC Vice President Travis Hough said the theft was “massive kick in the guts” for the community club, which kept its fees lows to make the sport accessible to as many people as possible.
“Our junior fees in winter are $40. So they’ve essentially stolen 13 kids’ fees,” Mr Hough said.
“This has put a big dint in our fund-raising. You hope to make a profit as a club but we’re going to have to do something else and we’re fairly stretched at the moment (with finance and time) as it is.”
PJFC President Travis Hamilton said that, like the baseball club, his club also tried to keep costs down through fund-raising.
“So something like this really does hurt,” Mr Hamilton said.
“I’m mostly frustrated because the hard work the committee puts in and the time parents donate to help out. That (effort) has been taken away so quickly.”
But, above all, he said it was “100 per cent” the kids that missed out.
“It’s the kids’ gear, the kids’ merchandise that’s been taken,” Mr Hamilton said.
Unfortunately, he said the recent theft was not a one-off.
All three Toomuc Reserve buildings had been broken into in the past year, Mr Hamilton said, with the senior football club’s rooms raided 12 months ago.
He put this down to a lack of lighting around the reserve and outdated security features.
“Now all three buildings have been broken into, council needs to step forward and provide more funding to upgrade the facilities,” Mr Hamilton said.
“We need upgrades to make it safer. Currently we have mothers and young children walking to their cars in the dark, and that’s concerning.”
Cardinia Shire Council said while it had supplied and installed the football club’s alarm system, its ongoing maintenance and monitoring was the club’s responsibility.
The council’s Active Communities Manager Jim Davine said Pakenham Senior Football Club, which shared the reserve with the junior club, had recently upgraded the pavilion’s security lighting through a Victorian Government grant.
He encouraged the clubs to apply for further grants.
“Grant funding is currently available from the Victorian Government which can provide up to $10,000 for lighting, locks, security alarm systems and fencing/ gates,” Mr Davine said.
“We are happy to help any of the user groups at Toomuc Recreation Reserve if they wish to apply for these grants.”
Mr Hough, on behalf on the Pumas, thanked the Pakenham sporting and general community for their support and “amazing offers” of generosity following the incident.
