BATH COUNTY, KY (LEX News) — The Owingsville-Bath County Sports Complex is about two weeks away from opening, but repeated acts of vandalism and theft have made construction harder and significantly more expensive.
R.L. Caudill Construction Vice President Stuart Caudill said the trouble started early in the project, when someone drove through the freshly graded fields in a pickup truck. About six months ago, a conex box was broken into and a generator and laser were stolen.
The most recent incident happened last weekend.
"Vandalize some of our equipment. Broke several windows and sprayed painted some of our equipment," Caudill said.
Caudill said the company was not going to profit from the facility's construction, doing the work at cost. After the damages and thefts, he said losses now total between $15,000 and $20,000.
"It's just frustrating cause our goal is to provide something for the youth in this community to have an avenue to get their minds off of that type of behavior," Caudill said.
Taylor Hodson grew up playing softball in Bath County and went on to play in college. She coaches young athletes at the fields next to the construction site on her own time and said the local fields helped get her to the college level. She said when the new fields open, the kids are going to be amazed.
"Wow, this is mine, this is so big, and so important. Look how nice this is," Hodson said.
Hearing about the vandalism doesn't sit well with her.
"It's really sad and disappointing. I don't know how much the Caudill's have done for our town," Hodson said.
R.L. Caudill Construction is offering a reward for information leading to an arrest. Anyone with information can contact the company at (606) 674-6270 or the Owingsville Police Department at (606) 674-2341.
