The picnic shelter still is available to rent for private or community events, but Sacha said it would need to be cleaned first. So far there’s little interest in using it this summer, he said.

“We have heard because of peoples’ perception and what they’re seeing, they just feel that it’s a place that’s not very inviting and are staying away from it,” Sacha said.

Jennifer Wills, parks and recreation director, said she wants more people to use the shelter and its surroundings. She said it’s current state is “saddening.”

Anyone wishing to rent the picnic shelter should give the department a “large heads up” to give staff time to clean it up, she said.

Parks and Recreation employees removed the tables and cleaned the shelter on Jan. 14. The tables haven’t been returned yet because they were vandalized while out at Roy Morris Park, where they had been repaired, Wills said.

The department will likely do a “full cleaning” of the shelter once the tables go back in, she said.

Park employees clean the shelter and bathrooms twice a day, Wills said.