Graffiti, public kept off park gazebo
with fence
Olympia officials say summer could test effectiveness
OLYMPIA -- For years, workers removed graffiti from the
Sylvester Park gazebo, but it kept returning. Once, they painted it black to
keep the writings from being visible and to deter taggers.
The latest
weapon in their arsenal is a 3-foot-high fence around the gazebo. Graffiti has
disappeared since it went up in November, said Larry Kessel, a parks supervisor.
"It's
unfortunate we had to fence it off, but it was getting destroyed," he said.
"I look at this as a positive thing. It's saved thousands (of dollars in
cleanup)."
This will be
the first summer the gazebo has been fenced. And with temperatures getting
warmer and more people expected outdoors, it also could be a test of how
effective the fence is in combating graffiti.
The state,
which manages the park, paid about $4,000 to erect the fence. Residents can use
the gazebo by calling State Capitol Visitor Services to make a reservation and
get a permit.
Olympia
resident Mike Jacobs lives across the street from the park and has his daily
coffee sitting outside Starbucks. Some skateboarders and bicyclists have used
the gazebo as a launching platform, he said.
"I think
it's (the fence) a good idea. When you have people who can't abide by the rules,
you have to do something," Jacobs said.
Katie Walters,
who lives on the west side and comes to the park frequently, said she and her
friends used to sit in the gazebo when it rained.
"When it's
raining, you don't see people down here," she said. "I think they
should take it down. It makes it look like a jail."
History of
vandalism
In his office
desk drawer, Kessel keeps a 4-inch stack of Polaroids dating back to 1997 that
documents vandalism at the 33 acres of state parks and three miles of trails he
oversees. The pictures show graffiti on the bottom of the gazebo to near its
roof, only reachable by those standing on the rail. There are leftover needles,
a burned garbage can and discarded blankets.
In the late
1990s, vandalism repairs totaled $28,000 a year -- the salary of an employee,
Kessel said.
Litter also is
a problem, says Ken Connally, who has helped maintain Sylvester Park for seven
years. He fills as many as three 5-gallon buckets of litter every morning.
People used to
sleep overnight in the gazebo because it provided covering and electricity. They
left food, blankets and sleeping bags. At 3 feet tall, the fence isn't
impassable, but it has kept people from sleeping there by sending the message
that crossing it without a permit is illegal, Connally said.
And vandals
would need to climb over the fence to leave graffiti on the gazebo, Kessel said.
Vandalism has
hit other state parks as well. At Heritage Park, someone tosses the sandstone
pavers that line the walkway into the lake and workers fish them out at least
once a week. They haul away uprooted trees and broken tree limbs. They escort
campers off-site with the help of the State Patrol.
These are the
things the public doesn't see, Connally said. Crews remove graffiti, pick up
litter and escort campers out as early as 5 a.m. They finish by 7 or 8 a.m.,
when residents start to show up downtown.
For years, the
park had been a place that some were afraid to visit, Kessel said. Steady
removal of graffiti, landscaping and increased patrols by the Olympia police and
the State Patrol have helped. Olympia work crews also assist.