The council, the police and those who maintain the grounds are sick of people driving dangerously on park land.
On January 6 a video was uploaded to social media of a red ute driving across Awamoa Park at speed.
A week later a group of youths was caught tearing up Centennial Park on a quad bike, leaving the field unusable.
Last year motorcyclists were caught riding around the Old Mill Link track, a mountain bike track intersecting walking routes.
The trend has upset the Waitaki District Council and the damage dealt to Centennial Park has left the North Otago Cricket Association with unusable pitches.
North Otago Cricket Association groundsman Ricky Whyte said the club had just spent $1000 renovating the cricket blocks at the start of the year.
The quad bike had torn up the pitches, destroying grass and leaving deep tracks.
"It’s not really fixable."
All he was able to do was give it water and fertiliser and hope it grew.
He expected they would be usable by Waitangi weekend, but the lasting effects would be there for a long time.
As a volunteer he gave his time to maintain the ground and the club did not have a lot of money to cover damages.
"I’m fairly pissed off.
"Money’s hard to come by."
He was made aware of the youths when it happened and called the police, not wanting to intervene.
The group of youths were doing donuts and at one point rolled the vehicle.
He believed the youths would face little punishment because of their age.
"Something needs to be done about these little pricks."
A police spokesman said police attended the incident and spoke to the youths and their parents.
Police had exhausted all lines of inquiry regarding the red ute on Awamoa Park and anyone with information was encouraged to come forward.
Council urban parks officer Matthew Lanyon said the trend of incidents was concerning.
"They just see a big open space to do their thing on."
It was fortunate there seemed to be no damage to Awamoa park after the driver went through it, but it was still dangerous and inappropriate.
"Think of the safety and wellbeing of those using the park.
"The road is the place for vehicles."
Driving on park land, even to get off the road or to have a picnic, could damage the surface and waste resources and ratepayer money.
The council posted on Facebook about the issue, asking people to stick to the road.
"In the last four weeks we’ve had way too many people having an off-road hoon or parking up where they shouldn't."
Looking after parks and reserves was a year-round endeavor and how they were treated in the hotter months mattered.
"Running a tonne of vehicle over dry dirt compacts it, and if soil gets too compacted, either grass doesn’t grow or the stuff that does grow isn’t able to get the good stuff from the soil."
The council was not considering installing a fence or barrier around Awamoa Park.
The Old Mill Link track, between Eden St and Old Mill Rd, is owned by the council and maintained by the North Otago Mountain Bike Club. Last year the club expressed concern motorcyclists on the track would damage the ground, collide with a cyclist, person or dog.
