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Plant-nabbers pluck greeneryBy Times staff writer © St. Petersburg Times, published March 15, 2001 ZEPHYRHILLS -- When a few plants on city property were pulled from the ground last week, city workers figured it was a few kids with nothing to do. When about 50 plants were taken from Krusen Field during the weekend, they got angry, city parks and facilities manager Shane LeBlanc said. "To come in and see all your work spoiled is kind of disappointing," LeBlanc said on Wednesday. "It's disappointing that someone is that low." In all, 75 plants on city property have been stolen, LeBlanc said. Coupled with the damage to the irrigation system at the park, there has been about $700 damage. "They have to be using a shovel and just pulling them up and throwing them in the back of a pickup truck," LeBlanc said. "It was probably a time-consuming operation." The stolen plants were liriope, India hawthorne and podocarpus, all plants that could be bought cheaply at local garden shops, LeBlanc said. They were taken mostly from Krusen, but also from Shepard Park and Alice Hall Community Center, he said. His workers are worried, he said, that their plantings this week at the Zephryhills Depot Museum could be next. Police are going to be watching them closely, he said. "We're kind of leery of going out and replanting them until the plant-nabbers get caught," LeBlanc said. "We don't want it to happen again."
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From today's Pasco Times |
