A new front in the graffiti fight

Portland,OR,United States

CANBY City officials, concerned by the spread of gang-related graffiti, are considering an ordinance that would require property owners to promptly restore vandalized property.

Canby prohibits graffiti and the possession of materials used to create graffiti but has no way to compel anyone to erase it.

The City Council will discuss a proposed ordinance tonight that would impose fines on property owners who don't clean up graffiti. The 7 p.m. public meeting is at the Canby Adult Center, 1250 S. Ivy St.

"We want to make sure we get a lot of information about what it takes to remove it. We don't want to unduly burden property owners" with expensive requirements, Mayor Melody Thompson said.

Law enforcement officials say eradicating graffiti is a small but important action that sends a message to gangs and potential gang members.

"You have to jump on it right away and get it removed. If you don't cover it up, it just invites more gang activity," said Canby Police Chief Ken Pagano. "When you let it grow and grow and grow, it becomes a blight on the community."

Latino gang graffiti has been a fact of life in the Portland area since the gangs started migrating north from California in the late 1980s.

Canby noted gang activity taking root in 1992 and stepped up enforcement. The problem subsided by 1998, but gangs and tagging -- graffiti associated with a person or group -- have been on the rise for the past few years, Pagano said.

"You can't let it turn into a Southern California type of place where things are out of control."

Canby has had four gang-related incidents this year in which shots were fired, police spokesman Sgt. Brian Howarth said. No one was injured.

Scott Field, Canby Chamber of Commerce president, said he hasn't heard many complaints about tagging from local businesses.

"Generally, it hasn't been a concern. It has been a concern for a select few who have been affected by it," Field said.

"We know that graffiti and gang activity have been a problem in many areas of the city. It is an underlying problem," said Bob Tice, Canby Livability Coalition president. "We'd certainly be supportive of getting rid of it."

In some cities, removing graffiti is a community effort.

The Gresham Police Department operates a graffiti tip line and has volunteers who clean public property that has been defaced by taggers. The city doesn't have an ordinance that requires private property owners to remove graffiti, department spokesman Officer Grant McCormick said.

Rubbing out graffiti "is only one tool" in combating gangs, McCormick said. Gresham has two full-time officers who track gang activity and a dozen officers who received specialized training, he said.

The Canby police force is too small to assign an officer to monitor gangs.

Forest Grove has intermittent problems with gangs and graffiti, Capt. Aaron Ashbaugh said. "It goes in spurts. It hasn't been too bad (lately)," he said.

Forest Grove also does not require graffiti removal.

Steve Mayes: 503-294-5916; stevemayes@news.oregonian.com