Banff Club Says Free-to-Use Sports Gear Is Being Stolen and Damaged

Keeping free recreation equipment at Banff Rotary Park is proving harder than expected.

Basketballs, pickleball equipment and children's games have repeatedly disappeared or been damaged, leaving the Rotary Club of Banff trying to figure out how to keep offering free gear without continually replacing it.

The latest incident happened after the club put eight or nine new basketballs and a new pickleball net at the park during a community day on Aug. 29.

One week later, they were gone.

"It's been steadily frustrating," Dean Cooper, past president of the Rotary Club of Banff, told Bow Valley Insider. "It does come and go in waves, but it's been a consistent problem."

The club said in a recent Facebook post that almost a dozen pickleball setups, more than 50 basketballs, numerous children's toys and other pieces of equipment have disappeared over time.

But missing equipment hasn't been the only problem.

Equipment damaged and taken

Dean said the issues began after the redesigned Rotary Park was completed just over a year ago.

The club started putting out pickleball nets, basketballs, children's games and other equipment for people to use at the park.

At first, some of that equipment was deliberately damaged.

Dean said balls were punctured with knives, pickleball rackets were broken, poles were bent and nets were cut.

"That was super frustrating," he said.

Community members rallied around the club and helped provide more gear, but Dean said the problems never completely went away.

The park has a PlayBox where recreation equipment can be stored for people to use and return. Dean said most people who use the park respect the system.

"Most of the members of the community are fantastic, they do the right thing, they put their ball away or nets or whatever it may be," he said.

But it only takes a small number of people for equipment to disappear.

The club is now considering whether another system could work better at the park, including a system that would allow people to check equipment in and out.

Dean said Rotary doesn't want to stop providing it.

"We want to keep providing that equipment because that really aligns with the philosophy of who and what Rotary is," he said. "But at what cost, because we don't have endless resources."

More than 100 years in Banff

The Rotary Club of Banff has been serving the community for more than 100 years, and Dean said providing equipment at the park is part of that broader goal.

"That is the club's goal, is to serve the community in the best way we know how," he said.

The redesigned Rotary Park includes a playground, day shelter, washrooms, picnic space and a multi-use sports court used for basketball and pickleball in warmer months and skating in winter.

The Wim & Nancy Pauw Foundation supported the redevelopment, while the Town of Banff provides regular maintenance at the park, including the seasonal ice rink.

Has it been reported to police?

The club has discussed whether to involve local law enforcement, but Dean said the relatively small scale of the individual incidents has made that a difficult decision.

He said there's no question the losses hurt both Rotary and the wider community, but the club has also questioned whether missing basketballs and pickleball equipment warrant taking police resources away from more serious incidents.

"Basketballs aren't extraordinarily expensive," Dean said. "Pickleball nets are a little more expensive, but it just feels like there are better directions that local law enforcement can be directing their energy and time."

Dean described the incidents as "very small scale theft" and said the club has discussed how much it wants to use law enforcement resources for something relatively minor compared with other incidents police deal with.

"That's kind of a conversation we've had," he said.

How people can help

For now, Rotary is looking to the community for help keeping the program going.

Dean said people can donate equipment or money toward replacements, join the Rotary Club and help come up with solutions, or simply return equipment to the PlayBox when they see it left around the park.

"Anyone that can just pick stuff up and put it back in the PlayBox, that's a great help as well," he said.

The club is also open to ideas for a better way to manage the equipment.

"We're not closed off to ideas from people," Dean said. "If anybody has an idea that they think would work, I'd love to hear it."

"I absolutely would love to hear it and I'm always willing to jump on a call with people and explore those ideas."