Thank Pamela Holm for bringing Sumner’s graffiti problems to the attention of the city council.
It wasn’t an easy road for her — when she presented the problem to the police, she was told their hands were tied. They could punish graffiti artists but couldn’t do anything about the removal.
But the 30-year Sumner resident didn’t give up. She sent a letter and photos to Sumner council members. On Monday, the council decided to tweak the nuisance ordinance to make it mandatory for property owners to clean up graffiti on their homes and businesses.
True, it could be seen a bit like punishing the victim. The same person who gets tagged is ultimately responsible for the clean-up or they must face a $250 fine.
The alternative, though, is to ignore the graffiti, which isn’t going to go away. It’s a problem that will simply get worse as the city grows larger and more of the earlier graffiti is disregarded.
Holm first saw the increase a few years ago, with the most obvious spot in town being the brick wall adjacent to the burned-down KC’s Caboose. Unfortunately, this brick wall is one of the first sites visitors see when they enter Sumner and one that has the greatest potential to be tagged again and again.
Perhaps in this case the best solution would be for the owners to invite local art students to paint a mural on the wall, simultaneously welcoming people into the sleepy town and discouraging future graffiti because artwork isn’t usually tagged.
Council’s decision was the best possible solution to the problem, hopefully nipping graffiti in the bud before it becomes more prevalent.
Print
E-Mail