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<< Previous   of   Next >>  Photo Gallery: Graffiti Cleanup   ADVERTISEMENT   CONTACT THE HERALD Robert Frank, City Editor frank@heraldnet.com   Published: Tuesday, October 9, 2007 Painted-over graffiti quickly reappears By Diana Hefley Herald Writer MOUNTLAKE TERRACE -- New graffiti went up soon after the wall was cleaned. The wall was scoured again soon after more graffiti showed up. It's a tug-of-war that is going to land "taggers" in the mud, police and county officials said Monday. "They're wasting their time because we're going to cover it up," Mountlake Terrace Police Chief Scott Smith said. "If they think we'll let their 'art' or whatever they call it stick around, they're wrong." A city crew was quick to paint over new graffiti that popped up over the weekend along a graffiti-infested section of the Interurban Trail, Smith said. A group of more than 80 volunteers along with county and city officials spent part of Saturday morning cleaning up graffiti in a tunnel and on a nearby retaining walk. They went through more than 100 gallons of paint. The cleanup, called Graffiti Paint Out Day, was part of a countywide effort to combat an increase in graffiti. Police and county officials say it's important to quickly clean up graffiti to prevent attracting more. "One important reason why we're attacking it aggressively in the county is because once a wall becomes fair game it becomes unmanageable," Smith said. Studies show that if graffiti is covered up quickly the vandalism eventually will stop, said Deanna Dawson, who advises County Executive Aaron Reardon on law and justice issues. There were a couple of tags that were spray-painted on the freshly-painted walls in Mountlake Terrace, she said. It wasn't a surprise. "We did anticipate some, but it wasn't nearly as bad as we thought it would be," Dawson said. "I don't think the volunteers will be discouraged. We cleaned it all up in 1 1/2 hours. It was so fast, and that means we can do it all throughout the county." Most of the graffiti in Mountlake Terrace doesn't appear to be gang-related, Smith said. Even so, the graffiti in the area has made some people afraid to use the trail. Before Saturday graffiti crowded a large wall south of 220th Street SW and a tunnel that goes under the street. City workers plan to clean up the floor of the tunnel and some bricks that weren't cleaned up over the weekend. Two nearby property owners have agreed to keep on top of the graffiti, Dawson said. They were given extra paint that was donated by the Rodda Paint Co., she said. Mountlake Terrace police officers will be checking on the vandalism as part of their regular patrols, Smith said. It is difficult to catch up with vandals, he said. Police did find two boys spray-painting graffiti in the area a couple of weeks ago. Instead of citing them with malicious mischief they were required to help with Saturday's cleanup, Smith said. "I think that's works best sometimes," he said. "They need to see what harm they've caused and they need to clean it up." Reporter Diana Hefley: 425-339-3463 or hefley@heraldnet.com.

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