Tim Puopolo first discovered a signpost was missing on Oct. 7. Over the next three days, Puopolo, Needham’s conservation specialist and trail coordinator, found that a dozen more of the 8-foot-tall, beefy wooden posts — newly installed and waiting for trail directional signs to be attached — had disappeared from the Town Forest, leaving dirt-filled holes on the crisscrossing trails.
The thefts have interrupted a 16-year trail improvement project and prompted a police investigation. The posts were installed at the Town Forest and Ridge Hill Reservation as part of the Trails Master Plan to update all of Needham’s forest trails into a cohesive park system.
The signposts were being installed ahead of the winter frost. Next spring, they will be supplemented with trail markers to help hikers who commonly find themselves lost in the maze of pathways.
Each of the 4-by-4-inch cedar posts weighs more than 50 pounds. The thieves appear to have used trucks and specialized equipment to dislodge the posts, which were buried 3 feet deep.
“As far as I know, (police) haven’t uncovered anybody with these posts or received any tips leading them in any particular direction,” said Puopolo. “It’s no longer a little act of vandalism, but something that’s very targeted.”
Premier Fence, a company based in Canton, began installing the trail markers for bikers, hikers and dog walkers Oct. 6. Days later, by Oct. 9, more than $2,000 worth of wood was missing.
Posts one and 29 were taken the day after they were installed Oct. 7. The fencing company replaced both posts, only to discover four more posts missing the day after. Three of those were from new locations, but post 29 was snatched for a second time, according to Puopolo.
“I went out there that Thursday morning, the ninth, and found seven more posts were missing,” said Puopolo.
It was at that point that he went to the police and filed a report Oct. 10 for a misdemeanor and the $2,000 of stolen property.
“There are no suspects or cameras and the poles will be replaced,” the report said.
The wooden posts that have been inserted into the ground, sprouting 5 feet above the soil, don’t make for an easy snatch and sprint.
“It was quite an effort to pull these things out,” said Dave Herer, chair of the Conservation Commission. “They weigh over 50 pounds, 3 feet of wood is in the ground too.”
“It would not be possible for a person to carry 10 of these out of the property without multiple people, multiple trips, or even the aid of a vehicle,” said Puopolo.
The majority of posts were taken off a major artery of the blue trail that goes through the property, one that’s big enough to allow for vehicular access. The posts haven’t been found anywhere on the property, and the holes left behind from being dug three feet into the ground have been backfilled by the thief with dirt and debris, according to Puopolo.
“I’m thankful they were worried about people not breaking their ankles in the holes, but that just adds another level of intention into this whole thing,” he said.
Puopolo hasn’t returned to the scene of the crime in weeks, putting a halt to replacing the posts until the project starts up in the spring. In hopes of explaining what the posts are and why they’ve been put on the trails, Puopolo has put up laminated signs stapled onto the wood that explain they’ll be “helping people at major intersections and trailheads.”
“I thought people were just uninformed or fearful of potential projects,” said Puopolo when asked what someone’s motive for taking the posts would be, suspecting that a lover of Needham’s outdoors might’ve been trying to put a stop to any construction that would destroy the landscape.
Herer says the signs are needed. “I know people that don’t even want to go there because they’re afraid of getting lost,” he said.
Eleven of the 85 trail markers have been stolen as of Oct. 9 — as far as town officials know — but there may be more. A full assessment of the theft is expected to be finished when the project starts back up in the spring.
“There’s no guarantee that any time, money and effort we spend replacing them now that they’ll stay,” said Puopolo. “It’s not just the cost of the post, but the labor.”
Needham Police currently have no leads on the thief’s identity. Some of the $2,000 worth of wood that’s gone potentially could be covered by insurance, but the town finance department has yet to give the final word on that process, according to Puopolo.