Cities must take grafitti seriously

And that means wiping it out quickly. None of it is innocent. All of it is a nuisance. Some of it can be a tip-off that there's trouble more serious than unsightly paint streaks.

Back alley and underpass wall writers have been around for years. But they've been on the increase in Allentown, Bethlehem and Easton recently. Some of it is just vandalism. Some of it is an indication of growing gang activity, which has resulted in more violence and drug dealing. As a result, it can't be ignored.

Mobile News | Subscribe Online | Order Reprints Doing something about it, though, is becoming a costly proposition for the cities. Allentown is considering purchasing another ''graffiti buster'' truck equipped with a power washer — at $40,000 — to stay on top of the spray-painted scrawls. Easton has applied for a $30,000 federal Community Development Block Grant for the same thing. Bethlehem is working on using Route 222 corridor funding to do the same.

While all three cities say graffiti is on the increase, only Allentown has kept track of it systematically. Between 2003 and 2005, the number of properties city workers cleaned up grew from 470 to 579. This year the city expects the number to more than double to around 1,200. Some of the spray painting is by gang ''wannabes,'' other graffiti is by gangs marking their territory or sending messages to members. All of it is evidence of real and potential crime. So, it's important that police and citizens follow the ''three Rs; read it, record it and remove,'' says ALERT Partnership President Michael Adams.

That's why it's important for neighborhood residents and police to work together. Gang graffiti ''is fear inducing,'' explains Caterina Roman of the Urban Institute. So, officials try to remove it within 48 hours. ''Removing it says, 'We don't want you here. So, get the hell out,' '' says Easton Police Captain Michael Vangelo.

When neighborhoods live in fear, gangs thrive. Graffiti can't be tolerated. Just as gangs and wannabes try to send a message with their spray painting, residents and the cities must reassert their ownership of neighborhoods.

It's just another form of trash that threatens to cheapen and destroy our cities.