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Graffiti Removal

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1. What Is the Law on Graffiti?

Under state law, "unlawfully applying graffiti" and "unlawfully possessing graffiti implements" are violations and punishable by a fine. In addition to a fine, a defendant may be ordered to perform hours of community service in order to remove graffiti. A person can also be charged with criminal mischief, which can be a misdemeanor or felony charge, depending on the dollar amount of damage or restoration costs. These crimes are punishable with higher fines and the possibility of jail time.

2. Who Causes Graffiti?

Taggers
Taggers seeking underground recognition and fame cause almost all of the graffiti in Eugene-Springfield. "Tags" take the form of often unreadable words or initials, elaborate designs or bubble-style letters. Tags can derive from a unique name, street name or moniker. Taggers' tools are spray paint, large-tipped pens, devices that etch glass, or adhesive material used to apply tags to a surface. A group of taggers are called a "crew," and a common value among crews is non-conformity to rules or authority. Taggers often refer to themselves as "street artists" or "writers" and to their tags as "art." They don't view their acts as unlawful, believing that tagging is self-expression. However, their acts of vandalism to public and private property add up to thousands of dollars in restoration costs every day.

Gang Graffiti
Graffiti is a gang's means of identifying "turf," proclaiming superiority over other gangs, and issuing challenges and threats to rivals. Unlike tagger graffiti, this type of graffiti will commonly spell out a gang name, their geographic area or a numeric identifier. It can sometimes show an entire list of gang nicknames called a "roll call" or "roster."

Skinhead/Hate Crime Graffiti
Rather than using graffiti to claim turf or intimidate rivals, racist skinheads use graffiti to spread racist and neo-Nazi beliefs. Their intimidation also targets Jews, people of color, gays and lesbians.

Whether it is gang related, hate crime or tagger graffiti, the result is the same: decreased property values, vandalized public assets, and increased fear and anger among residents, business owners and other citizens.

3. What are the Effects of Graffiti?

Psychological Effect of Graffiti
Graffiti makes people feel that the neighborhood is being lost to gangs and lawlessness. If allowed to remain, graffiti becomes the first sign of urban decay, sending a highly visible message of lawlessness and a neighborhood unconcerned about its appearance. It instills fear and a feeling of vulnerability.

Economic Effect of Graffiti
When graffiti exists in a neighborhood, outsiders who may be considering opening a business or buying a home are likely to feel uneasy; they may choose to look elsewhere. Who wants to move to a blighted, decaying community? In addition, longtime residents and business owners may also think about relocating before it's too late!

Graffiti undermines community development, especially those efforts aimed at bringing in new businesses. Neighborhoods blighted by graffiti may find it particularly difficult to attract revitalizing investments. In addition to long-term effects, the immediate cost of removing graffiti can run into tens of thousands of dollars in private and public expense.

Graffiti attracts Graffiti
Taggers derive a certain excitement and thrill to tag in as many places as possible, and they often compete for recognition. Allowing graffiti to remain is equivalent to the "broken window syndrome" - leaving one broken window unrepaired will attract breakage in others as well.

In addition to being an attractive nuisance, graffiti also invites violence. Gang members intentionally deface other gangs' graffiti, perpetuating the cycle of violence. To allow another gang's graffiti to go unchallenged is contrary to the essence of gang philosophy.

4. How Does Public Works Remove Graffiti?

Public Works has regular routes that cover areas that are frequently tagged. These routes include specific areas of town, bike paths, and bridge structures. The department also receives reports of graffiti from citizens, neighborhood groups, the Police Department, and other City employees.

Starting July 1, 2010, funding for graffiti abatement on private property was eliminated. City staff will continue to routinely remove graffiti from the public rights of way and City-owned facilities. Private property owners and residents are encouraged to remove graffiti because prompt removal discourages additional graffiti. We also encourage reporting all graffiti to the reporting center so it can be tracked by local law enforcement.

When someone reports graffiti to the front office of Roosevelt Yard, staff is usually able to conduct a field visit within two working days. Most times Public Works can take care of the problem on the first visit. Sometimes staff needs to come back later with a pressure washer trailer. When this happens, similar work is coordinated for efficiency. In these cases it might take a week to get back to remove the graffiti. Reports of gang-related, hate-related and obscene graffiti are dealt with immediately during normal working hours.

Although Public Works does not remove graffiti on private property, we encourage reporting of graffiti, particularly offensive words and images, and we are available to advise property owners on techniques for removing graffiti.

Removing graffiti can be easy, but oftentimes extremely difficult and expensive. Public Works uses several methods, picking the best one for each tag and surface. Choices include a hot water pressure washer, paint, replacement of the item that was vandalized, and cloth, elbow grease and an environmentally friendly chemical.

Report graffiti. Call Public Works Maintenance at 541-682-4800 or email PWM.

5. What is the Huckleberry Patrol?

Huckleberry Patrol is a volunteer-driven graffiti abatement effort that helps businesses in the midtown area (11th to 15th, Charnelton to Ferry). Two-person teams travel by bicycle in the midtown area to locate, document, and remove and/or paint over graffiti.

In May 2007, the Eugene Police Department launched Huckleberry Patrol, a new volunteer-driven graffiti abatement effort. Team members travel by bicycle in the midtown area (11th to 15th, Charnelton to Ferry), working in two-person teams to locate, document, and remove and/or paint over graffiti.

The team is limited to the midtown area because there are only seven members. Some team members have regular shifts, while others schedule their shifts as they are available. Shifts tend to be weather dependent.

Some midtown businesses have filled out hold harmless agreements, allowing the volunteers to remove any graffiti they find on their property. If the volunteers locate graffiti on private property where there is no hold harmless agreement on file, they can approach the business, offer their services, and have the business owner fill out the form at that time. Businesses also contact the Volunteers in Policing Program requesting that the Huckleberry Patrol respond to their business to remove the graffiti. The volunteers use paint and supplies donated by local businesses. Businesses can also provide their own matching paint for the volunteers to use. Digital photos of the graffiti are downloaded and stored in a graffiti photo folder.

For more information:

• Midtown businesses wanting to participate in Huckleberry Patrol can call 541-682-5287 to join
• Citizens interested in joining the Huckleberry Patrol as volunteers should call 541-682-5355
  
• Email Carrie Chouinard

6. What Can I Do About Graffiti?

• If you see graffiti or tagging in progress, call the Police Non-Emergency number at 541-682-5111. That same tagger may cause tens of thousands in property damage unless he or she is stopped.
• If you have information about the identity of a graffiti tagger, call the Graffiti Tip Line at 541-682-8848. If your information leads to an arrest, you may be eligible for a cash reward.
• To report new graffiti, call the Eugene Public Works Department at 541-682-4800. The sooner graffiti is reported and painted over, the better.

7. What is Eugene Doing to Fight Graffiti?

The City’s Police and Public Works Departments have an active anti-graffiti program, which includes a computerized system for photographing and tracking graffiti. The graffiti database is capable of linking graffiti or tag designs to specific individuals, and it also can be used to identify problems and trends in geographic areas in order to focus graffiti-suppression efforts. The City also has a public education and information campaign focused on reducing the tolerance for graffiti in our community.

Each year the City of Eugene removes over 5,000 tags on public property, including USPS mail boxes and utility-owned surfaces. We have regular routes that cover areas that are frequently tagged, including specific areas of town, bike paths, and bridge structures. When someone reports graffiti we usually conduct a field visit within two working days. Gang-related, hate-related and obscene reports are dealt with immediately during normal working hours.

Public Works does not remove graffiti from private property.

Download our Graffiti Brochure or, use the online Graffiti Reporting Center.