Walls ripped off and equipment set alight in senseless vandalism at Bunbury youth precinct Koolambidi Woola

Bunbury’s first-ever multimillion-dollar youth precinct has been vandalised — with walls smashed and play areas set alight — just months after the facility was opened to the public.

It is the latest in a string of destructive acts at the new Koolambidi Woola which began almost as soon as the youth facility opened on July 4.

The City of Bunbury took to social media to call out the latest act of senseless destruction and ask those responsible to “please rethink your actions”.

“Koolambidi Woola is an amazing facility that was built for our community, by our community,” the post read.

“Since its opening, the City has carried out numerous works to repair damage and vandalism, but the destruction caused over the past few weekends is by far the worst we have seen.

“The walls of toilets have been smashed, fittings and areas of the precinct have been lit on fire and important community resources such as defibrillators have been damaged.

“While the cost — which is ultimately a cost on our community — of these repairs is frustrating, it’s more about the lack of respect for our community and our community’s facilities.”

The post outlined that CCTV footage of the area would help police investigations into the damage, while asking people to report any further damage or vandalism to city staff by calling 9792 7000.

Koolambidi Woola was funded through $4.5 million from Bunbury City Council, a $2.5m grant from Lotterywest, $1.2m from the Federal Government’s Local Roads and Community Infrastructure Program and a grant from the Department of Local Government, Sport and Cultural Industries.

The name translates in Noongar to “celebrating young people”, with Koolambidi meaning “young people aged 12 to 25 years” and Woola meaning “celebrate”.

The area features a multi-sports court, parkour areas, mini-golf, a youth services building, beach climbing net and an event and performance space.