Graffiti Complaints Rising Sharply in Los Angeles
By Sandy Wells KABC News
The City of LA has 60 to 65 crews out removing graffiti everyday, but the spread of the visual blight is on the rise again. Requests for removal are up 64 percent in the last five years, according to officials. Paul Rocs, the Director of the LA Office of Community Beautification, doesn’t deny there is a problem.
“Graffiti has always been one of those things that tends to run in cycles. It’ll kind of go up for a while and then, maybe, more resources and enforcement are kind of aimed at it, and it goes down for a bit. Then priorities change, and it kind of comes back up. We’re definitely seeing an upswing right now.”
When the financial crisis depleted the city’s coffers, the abatement program was cut back. However, Rocs says over the last two years, it’s been restored to where it was six years ago.
“We did have some secondary programs, like an educational program that went into schools and talked to kids about graffiti and tried to instill a positive message when they’re in elementary and junior high school and try to change their mindset before they maybe try to pick up that spray paint. But we haven’t had that program now since about 2009.”
Rocs says more people are calling in requests through the 311 system and that means there are fewer proactive crews to patrol the areas most susceptible to tagging. Instead, crews are responding to the requests for graffiti removal. The Board of Public Works is asking for an additional $1.5 million in spending to add 13 strike teams and restore the educational outreach program.
Rocs was a guest on 790 KABC’s McIntyre in the Morning Show with Doug McIntyre and Terri Rae Elmer.
