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Clark County and several community
partners are encouraging residents to fight graffiti
through a new public outreach campaign called
"Targeting Area Graffiti.
Clark County worked with the
Southern Nevada Graffiti Coalition, comprised of members
from local police and government agencies as well as
business and homeowners groups, to develop the campaign.
Elements include a website section
linked from the front page of the county’s website at www.accessclarkcounty.com
and Clark County Television (CCTV) Channel 4 public
service announcements. Billboards donated by the
REALTORS® and Outdoor Promotions urge residents and
neighborhood groups to call the Southern Nevada Graffiti
Coalition Hotline at 455-4509 to report graffiti,
request paint for clean ups or volunteer for clean-up
efforts.
The hotline, a recorded message
line staffed by Clark County Public Response personnel,
receives about 140 calls a month. Calls are returned or
referred to appropriate jurisdictions within 24 hours.
The number of calls to the hotline has more than tripled
since the launch of the campaign on March 15.
The county has three full-time
painters devoted to cleaning up graffiti and assisting
with hotline requests. As part of the county’s new
anti-graffiti plan announced on March 15, Public
Response expanded its program to give away paint to
community groups that want to help clean up graffiti.
Paint and supplies are available Monday through Friday
from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. Groups need to call ahead to make
an appointment to pick up materials.
"The hotline is primarily a
referral service that we coordinate with the various
cities in the valley," said Chief Code Enforcement
Officer Joe Boteilho. "We do not have the resources
to do all the clean ups in the county ourselves, so we’re
offering the public an opportunity to come and get the
supplies they need five days a week, instead of one day
a week. With the public’s help, we can get the job
done faster."
The Greater Las Vegas Association
of REALTORS® donated a billboard to promote the
hotline. The sign, located on Interstate 15 between the
Charleston Boulevard and Sahara exits, faces southbound
traffic. The billboard will rotate to different spots
around the valley for a year. The group also plans to
encourage members to report graffiti and get involved in
clean-up efforts.
"Graffiti has a definite
impact on property values if it’s prevalent in a
neighborhood," said Linda Rheinberger, president of
the REALTORS® Association. "It’s bad for the
community, and our membership is interested in working
with the county and the Southern Nevada Graffiti
Coalition to assist in the effort to fight graffiti in
any way we can."
Officials say a key to getting rid
of graffiti is to clean it up as fast as possible. Once
graffiti is visible on a wall or building, the property
becomes a magnet for more graffiti.
"Our shelters are frequent
targets of graffiti vandals, and we know first hand that
the key to getting rid of graffiti is to clean it up
fast," said Gary Young, owner of Outdoor Promotions
Inc. "We’re happy to help promote the hotline and
encourage more community involvement in cleaning up
graffiti."
Outdoor Promotions Inc. placed
billboards in 60 shelters valleywide featuring the
graffiti hotline and one of four messages: report
graffiti; free paint available to cover up graffiti;
retailers urged to lock up spray paint; and volunteers
needed to clean up graffiti through resident-created
Neighborhood Pride Zones. Clark County’s Neighborhood
Pride Zone program helps residents
organize grass-roots efforts to beautify and preserve
their neighborhoods. The county has 48 active
Neighborhood Pride Zones.
Following the March 15 news
conference, Commissioner Williams and county staff held
a neighborhood meeting at Joe Shoong Park to establish a
Pride Zone and organize clean-up activities in the Vegas
Manor area bordered by Charleston Boulevard, Sahara
Avenue, Nellis Boulevard and U.S. 95. The park is
located at 1503 Wesley St., the same site of the March
15 event unveiling the county’s new anti-graffiti
plan.
Clean up activities in the Vegas
Manor area started March 20 and will continue for
several weeks. On the first day, Pubic Response staff
counted 101 cases of graffiti on private property in the
area, in the first week alone staff abated graffiti
totaling more than $40,000 in damages.
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