City Councilman Tony Avella (D-Bayside) and U.S. Rep. Anthony Weiner (D-Kew Gardens) held a rally Sunday with area civics to demand restoration of the police's Anti-Graffiti Vandalism Unit, recently merged with the Transit Vandals Unit as part of the city's budget cuts.

"For all of us here, graffiti is a huge quality-of-life issue," Avella said at the rally, held in the parking lot of Commerce Bank at 196-41 Northern Blvd. with a handful of northeast Queens residents in attendance.

The Anti-Graffiti Vandalism Unit, run out of the 111th Precinct in Bayside, and the Transit Vandals Unit merger is expected to have up to 80 officers assigned to patrol subway tunnels, stations and yards, as well as above ground, according to police.

Both Avella and Weiner believe that with the two police units' merger, the efforts against graffiti will be diluted in northeast Queens, perhaps signifying the city's lack of commitment.

"The emphasis is not going to be there," Avella said. "It seems to be an across-the-board effort in cutting the anti-graffiti services."

Weiner added: "There is no doubt that if you tell someone it is your specialty (to fight graffiti), you increase the success rate. We're not going to simply accept graffiti as the background to our lives."

Residents said graffiti on public and private property seems to be on the rise, with negative implications for real estate values and civic pride.

"I'm concerned about the graffiti in the area. I see it on the Long Island Expressway retaining walls, the Marathon Bridge overpass," said Ed Doster, a Little Neck resident.

"The value of our homes depends on the care of our homes," said Beverly McDermott, vice president of the Kissena Park Civic Association.

And Tyler Cassell, president of the North Flushing Civic Association, agreed, saying "it gives the wrong signal to the community."

Said Weiner: "We're getting back to the point where graffiti has lost some of its stigma." But, he added, graffiti is a problem that can lead to more severe quality-of-life problems if left unchecked. "If you handle the little things ... kids or adults don't think of stepping up to bigger problems," Weiner said. "And our community becomes much more stable."

In addition, Avella and Weiner are asking the city to beef up anti-graffiti funding in city agencies such as the Sanitation and Transportation departments.

"For six months I've been trying to get the DOT to paint over the graffiti on the Cross Island Parkway," Avella said. He later added, "Graffiti on the highways, that's the gateway for tourists to our city."

"This is a message we want to send to the mayor," Avella said. "This is a priority for residential areas in the city."

Residents vowed to continue local efforts to fight graffiti, including volunteer beautification programs like the one run by the North Flushing Civic Association.

"Whatever I can do to help," Doster said. "I can pick up a paint brush. Put on my old clothes."

Reach reporter Sophia Chang by e-mail at news@timesledger.com, or by phone at 718-229-0300, Ext. 146.