This is why we can’t have nice things

UNDER ATTACK... Christmas decorations have become the target of acts of vandalism. So far, the Christmas Cows, present boxes in Victoria Park and Santa's mailbox in the Maude Street Mall have all been damaged. The cost will be borne by ratepayers. Photo: Struan Jones

IN another act of Christmas derangement, vandals have tipped two of the three present boxes installed at Victoria Park Lake into the water and had their bows broken.

Meanwhile, Santa’s mailbox in the Maude Street Mall, which provides a location for Children to post letters to Santa, has been damaged beyond repair.
The present boxes had been decorated by primary school students from across Greater Shepparton.

The boxes took hours of painting and decorating and the students were very much looking forward to seeing their artwork on display this festive season. Other present boxes had been decorated by SAM, Kaiela Arts and Berry Street too.

This damage comes at a cost to Council with a contractor having to be organised after hours to remove the boxes from the lake, and Council will need to look into a replacement mailbox decoration for next year.
The vandalism comes on the back of two incidences of the iconic Christmas Cows being damaged.

Council is encouraging anyone with information to contact the Shepparton Police.