Graffiti raising ire of police, businesses

Todd Krysiak / Daily Register

Portage Theaters owner John McWilliams Jr. motions toward graffiti on a wall in the alley behind his business. McWilliams said he has invested money to improve the back entrance to the theater, giving patrons easier access to additional parking downtown.
By Todd Krysiak, Daily Register


It might seem an innocuous offense, a little bit of paint on the side of a building, fence or doorway, but graffiti is a serious problem for business owners and a pain for a police department that has to commit patrol officers to areas that have been vandalized and investigators to track down the culprits.

The Portage Theaters building has been the target of several acts of vandalism. Owner John McWilliams Jr. said the old brick building that houses his downtown business had not been seriously defaced prior to this summer.

"The vandalism to this building over the last 30 years has been minimal," he said. "Just since this summer have we had these problems."

McWilliams pointed to some graffiti that had been sprayed on an unpainted brick wall near the back entrance to the theater.

"We've had employees spend hours trying to get this stuff off," he said. "They've tried solvents and scrubbed for three-and-a-half hours and it's still there."

Since Nov. 22, police have recorded seven acts of vandalism related to "tagging," the street term for spray-painting names and other messages on the sides of just about anything.

Those incidents involved residences primarily outside of downtown, in which garages, fences and even a car were vandalized.

The recent situation comes on the heels of a summer that kept police busy, particularly in the downtown area, where theater, Fire Department, First Presbyterian Church, Portage Furniture and other businesses and city-owned buildings were vandalized.

Main Street Portage Executive Director Vince Masterson said he is encouraging business owners to be more vigilant.

"If there are people hanging around in back alleyways that shouldn't be there, they need to keep an eye out," he said. "If they look suspicious, call the police. Things that look out of the ordinary are probably a good indication something's going on. You just got to use your best judgement."

Masterson said he was disappointed that the issue even needs to be addressed.

"We'll try to do our best to catch them and have them pay for the damage," he said. "It just kind of shows a lack of respect for downtown business owners and some of the things we're trying to do."

Masterson said the vandalism damages the appeal of downtown establishments.

McWilliams has invested money to make the back entrance to the theater more accessible to customers as an easy way to get to extra parking.

"The entire downtown is trying to create a decent look and make it a place people feel safe to bring their families," he said. "When you have stuff that says 'bloods and crips' all over, those people aren't going to feel safe."

The vandals also apparently climbed up onto the roof of the building and painted a message on the stucco front of the business above the marquee and a higher brick portion behind it.

That has caused further problems. McWilliams said the stucco has faded in the last 10 years, and matching the paint would be nearly impossible.

"We don't want to have a patchwork of different shades and colors all over the front of the building," he said.

The stucco also is a rough surface, making it impossible to scrub the hard-to-reach area above the marquee.

Police Chief Ken Manthey said police have charged three 15-year-olds and one 16-year-old with misdemeanor criminal damage to property as a result of the downtown incidents.

"We did solve about a half-dozen of the graffiti cases we had," Manthey said. "Then we had some more cases just last week. We also found some graffiti at Silver Lake Beach (Friday)."

Manthey said the courts handle juveniles differently, but an adult charged with criminal damage to property — the most common charge related to graffiti — could face a maximum penalty of nine months in jail and up to a $20,000 fine.

Police Detective Klaude Thompson has spent countless hours trying to track down the vandals, and eventually made the four arrests.

"It's very time-consuming," he said. "Once we start catching them, it's nice for the owners."

For juveniles, Manthey said he believes it is important for the courts to send young adults a message.

"It's very important they get community service," he said. "In the past, young people would have to go out and paint over the graffiti and damage they had caused."

Thompson said working with juveniles is more complicated for police than handling adults.

"In dealing with them and their parents, I suggested they go with their parents and talk to the property owners to see if they can make it right," he said. "The property owners often would much rather (the juveniles) do the work."

On some properties, like the theater, that may not be possible.

"At some of the places, (the juveniles) may think they are causing minor damage," he said. "Those materials could cost thousands of dollars. Sometimes these kids have no idea the kind of property damage they're doing."

Juveniles and their parents can be held responsible for financial damages in some cases, an arrangement Thompson said he encourages.

"We'd like to see them punished as much as possible and hopefully the word gets out just how much this can cost," he said.

Thompson said it's important for the spray paint to be cleaned off as quickly as possible.

"Their idea is to have people see it. That's why it should be cleaned off right away," he said. "Any time they see tagging, kids with too much time on their hands start getting ideas."

Thompson said he didn't think the vandalism in Portage is caused by any gangs moving into the area.

"It's a bunch of kids with too much time on their hands," he said. "All of them have had numerous truancy problems, and these are the kinds of things that happen when kids aren't going to school."

McWilliams said he holds the parents responsible.

"It's just a lack of discipline," he said. "Parents aren't doing their jobs with these kids."

tkrysiak@capitalnewspapers.com

745-3509