Henderson changes tactics in graffiti war

The war on graffiti just got a little hotter in Henderson.

Funding has been approved by the City Council for a graffiti van. It will be equipped with a computerized paint-matching system, so workers assigned can restore graffiti-scarred areas to their original appearance.

Last year, one group of graffiti artists alone cost the city more than $75,000.

With the expense at that level, the $100,000 cost for the van and system alone is justified, city officials say. For those who have witnessed the rise in graffiti in recent years, it is a small price to pay for returning damaged areas of Henderson to their original luster.

"This will go a long way in restoring the aesthetic look of the city," John Bartells, traffic engineer for the Department of Public Works, said. His department will be in charge of the truck.

The technology associated with the van will solve the problem of the current system, which often leaves neighborhoods marked by the replacement paint.

"What you end up with now are square patches (of paint) that don't even match the wall coloring," he said.

The new graffiti van will come equipped with a device similar to an arm or wand that will blend matching paint over surfaces scarred by graffiti, Bartells explained.

To aid in the color-matching process, the van also will come equipped with a computer that will digitally match color components for exact replication.

In addition, the system includes a spectrometer, which is a precision instrument used to break down and analyze any surface color to blend the new paint to match.

The system, which will be purchased from Color Connections Inc., will be the only one in use in Nevada for graffiti, Bartells said. He added that cities in California that have the system have been pleased with the results.

Another advantage of the system, according to Bartells, will be quicker clean up, which is vital in stopping graffiti.

"The response time will be faster, because right now cleanup just takes place on the weekends," Bartells explained. "With this system, though, it will be on the streets four to five days a week, and the longer you leave graffiti, the more graffiti it will attract." To make the response quicker, the van also will have a dispatch match on the computer to show the locations of graffiti.

Bartells said the city is in the process of hiring a driver to mix the paints and operate the computer.

Right now, cleaning up graffiti on public property in Henderson is the job of the Henderson Municipal Court Programs Division. Every weekend people with community-service hours to fill take to the streets to clean up the remnants of graffiti artists' work from the week before.

"We usually have between 20 and 60 people out there painting over graffiti, and these are usually people doing community service or working off fines for misdemeanors or traffic violations," explained Dale Stoddard, the community service coordinator who is in charge of the cleanup crew.

From what he has seen during his 11 years on the job in Henderson, the increase in graffiti is directly related to growth. Henderson is the fastest growing city in the country, according to the U.S. Census Bureau.

"As the city grows, so does the graffiti," he said. "Sometimes one week we paint over a wall, and the next week we are right back out there doing it again."

Once the graffiti van takes to the streets at the beginning of July, the community-service workers will continue doing other cleanup operations, such as litter control.

"Eleven years ago, graffiti was just added into our operations," Stoddard explained. "As a whole, the community-service program saves the city of Henderson over $1 million a year."

Although the new graffiti vehicle is expected to improve the city's ability to deal with graffiti, the Henderson Police Department believes in the old adage, "An ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure," Officer John Bakalas said.

Bakalas was assigned to the graffiti investigation eight months ago, and during that time has been part of one of Henderson's biggest graffiti busts -- the arrests of six people in January.

The six were a group of graffiti artists, or "taggers," who were responsible for $75,000 in property damage in Henderson last year, according to Bakalas.

Taggers are generally not gang members. They just seek recognition for their tags, which they create with spray paint in public areas, Bakalas said.

Usually taggers are under 20, Bakalas said. Five out of the six arrested in January were juveniles, he added.

Taggers are now hitting areas of Henderson previously left alone, Bakalas added.

"They've even hit Boulder City," Bakalas said.

Gang graffiti, which marks territory and sends messages to other gangs or gang members, has not seen that much of an increase in Henderson, according Bakalas. Instead, taggers have accounted for most of the increase in graffiti, with eight arrests made so far this year.

Citizens are instrumental in the war on graffiti.

"Citizens of Henderson have been helping us out, which is great, since we only have so many eyes," Bakalas said.

One thing that residents should not do, Bakalas said, is paint over the graffiti before police arrive.

"We need to take pictures of it so that we can use it as evidence and to identify the culprits, usually by the nicknames or initials that they leave," he said.

Juveniles caught spraying graffiti are usually remanded to the juvenile court system, while adults usually are charged with either a gross misdemeanor or felony, Bakalas said. As for the penalties, he said that depends on the circumstances of the crime.

"It's on a case-by-case basis," he explained. "So the sentence can vary greatly depending on what the district attorney or court decides."

Graffiti, though, is definitely not the harmless mischief that it is often perceived to be, Bakalas said.

"We are paying for it with our tax dollars and in decreased property values," he said. "So we are all victims of it."

archive