Mainly retired residents of the council-owned Swansea Village council flats are again calling for better security as homes and vehicles continue to be targeted by night-time thieves and vandals.
Regular concerns in the village near the Flaxmere Village Shopping Centre have been sparked again by the targeting of a vehicle belonging to 80-year-old retired watersider Ron Benson at the weekend.
The driver's door lock was damaged in an attempt to enter the vehicle and the door couldn't be opened without repairs, estimated to cost about $400.
Because of a $300 insurance excess he didn't see the point in claiming and was wearing the bill, and also wondered what would be done by the police after difficulties reporting the incident, despite a police station being placed on the perimeter of the village.
He's been told police and the Hastings District Council, which owns and runs the 64-unit complex, will view CCTV security surveillance images, which friend and fellow resident Dianne Hook says appears to be about the only other form of security in place in the area at night.