Vandals ruin public artwork at Bottle Alley on Hastings seafront

A team of volunteers spent weeks removing graffiti and painting the concrete pillars in bright colours last year. The completion of the work was celebrated with an art exhibition in Bottle Alley in the summer.

But now their efforts look to have been wasted due to a recent upsurge in graffiti tags.

The vandalism was condemned by Hastings Borough Council, who issued a statement to say: “We have seen an increase in graffiti tags appearing on the recently painted columns and walls of Bottle Alley

"This criminal damage causes a huge cost to local tax payers and takes workers away from other vital jobs. If you have any information about who was responsible for this, please let is know or contact Crimestoppers on 0800 555111. Visit www.crimestoppers-uk.org.”

The ongoing situation has led to calls to install cameras in Bottle Alley. One resident commented: “Bottle Alley was looking really clean and revived. Why can’t people just leave things alone?”

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