Bigger cities get little out of graffiti ordinances

By John Ramsey
Rocky Mount Telegram

Friday, September 22, 2006

The Tractor Supply Co. has painted its back wall at least three times this year, but the graffiti – large, sloppy black spraypainted letters spelling "Blood" and "5Poppin'" – never stays gone for long.

A new coat of white paint just represents a new, clean canvas for the vandals, said Al Hunt, assistant manager at the store.

"Here lately, it's been a real nuisance for us," Hunt said.

The graffiti ordinance considered by the Rocky Mount City Council at its last meeting may be a good idea in theory, but Hunt and others question its effectiveness and fairness.

The initial proposed ordinance – which is being revised at the council's request – included a $100 penalty for private property owners who do not remove graffiti within five days. The fine was equal to the proposed $100 penalty for first-time graffiti offenders, who, according to police, are next to impossible to catch in the act.

Small businesses would struggle to pay a fine, especially for crimes they didn't commit, said Jay Williamson, owner of Head 2 Toe on Falls Road.

"It costs so much already to run a business," Williamson said. "To penalize us for someone else's actions is wrong."

The prospect of a graffiti ordinance in the city came in response to a surge in the activity during the past six months, said Rocky Mount police Capt. Wayne Sears. Most graffiti, which in Rocky Mount is mainly gang-related, goes unreported, but the police department has noticed 38 instances in the past six months, Sears said.

Rocky Mount police looked at Richmond, Va., and Durham, among other cities, when drafting the proposed ordinance. Richmond and Durham's policies differ, but neither charges property owners for graffiti removal.

In both Durham and Richmond, officials have found that an ordinance is less important than a plan.

Richmond has two employees who work fulltime in the Public Works Department to remove graffiti. If vandals tag private property, the city offers the owners a consent form, then removes the graffiti. But even with a $140,000 graffiti removal budget, it's tough to make a dent in its presence, said Lewis Yancey, facilities maintenance manager of the street cleaning division in Richmond.

"If we remove about 150 a month, I would say half of them pop back up," he said.

Richmond has had a graffiti ordinance on its books since 1993, but doesn't use it when offenders are caught. Richmond police Detective Greg Sullivan said the city has caught no more than five or six people spraying graffiti this year.

"In the 12 years I've been doing police work, that's probably one of the most rare crimes you can catch someone doing," he said. "When they get to the wall, it doesn't take them but a few minutes."

And on that rare occasion, the city prefers to use Virginia's property damage laws.

Durham has no graffiti ordinance, but instead has a team in its police department's neighborhood improvement department that cleans up graffiti.

And because it lies under the police department umbrella, the team does not need consent forms to go on private property.

"Within 24 to 48 hours, we remove it regardless of whether it's on private or public property," said Mitch Archer, manager of the Neighborhood Improvement Department in Durham, which has cleaned as many as 700 graffiti tags in a month.

Durham's startup costs were about $30,000, Archer said, and now the city spends about $6,000 to $7,000 to purchase chemicals – called Taginator – to remove the graffiti with pressure washing.

In Rocky Mount, graffiti removal falls to the Public Works and Parks and Recreation departments, depending on the graffiti's location.

"We may get a request or two per week," said Public Works Director Doug Roberson. "We've only been doing this for a couple of months."

At 4 p.m. Monday in the Council Chambers, the City Council will discuss the proposed ordinance to decide – before the graffiti problem reaches the level of Durham or Richmond – what direction to send the city's plan.