The city will post a security guard at the now-closed Wailupe Valley Elementary School, which was targeted by vandals recently, Mayor Mufi Hannemann said yesterday.

Police will also increase patrols in the area.

Vandals are believed to have hit the campus, which is nestled in a residential neighborhood, over the Thanksgiving weekend.

They covered doors and walls with graffiti, but did no lasting damage.

Hannemann said the vandalism was cleaned up yesterday by city crews.

The city got the property in September, three months after the state Department of Education closed the school in a consolidation move. Its students were assigned to nearby 'Äina Haina Elementary.

Yesterday, the mayor said the city is working quickly to come up with suitable plans for the site.

The city is considering several possible proposals for the former school, and the mayor said part of the delay in finalizing plans is because city departments have to be given first dibs on the property.

In a news conference yesterday, Hannemann said the city Department of Parks and Recreation has expressed interest in putting offices in the building and using the lower campus as park space.

The Board of Water Supply is interested in putting a water tank at the site.

"It's not that the city has been sitting idle," Hannemann said. "There's a process."

But some still express frustration over the length of time it has taken to decide on the future of the school, and they worry the vandals will return.

"We hate to see things like (this)," said Bob Chuck, chairman of the Kuli'ou'ou /Kalani Iki Neighborhood Board, adding that a decision on the campus needs to be made soon.

City Councilman Charles Djou, whose district includes Wailupe Valley Elementary School, said the city should have ensured the property was secure to prevent vandalism.

He also urged the city to work faster to come up with a plan for the site's future.

"The city has known Wailupe Valley was closing for well over a year now," Djou said.

He added he has no strong preferences on what to do with the site.

"The only bad thing is doing nothing," he said.