Removing Graffiti from Historic Masonry (Part G)
Preventing and Controlling Graffiti
Experience shows that prompt removal of graffiti is one of the mosteffective measures against its recurrence. Graffiti that is not removedquickly tends to attract more graffiti. Often motivated by a need to havetheir work seen, graffitists tend to be discouraged from repeating theirefforts in a location where their work is quickly removed.
Apart from removal, effective graffiti-prevention measures can be consideredunder two headings. The first consists of physical measures involving maintenance,lighting, security and the erection of barriers on or around the propertyitself. The second focuses on community awareness programs that includeneighborhood patrols, community service programs and educational programsin the schools.
Maintenance and Security. Neglect invites vandalism, whereasa well-maintained property encourages civic pride. Thus, careful attentionshould be given to establishing regular maintenance programs which do notallow properties to reach a point of obvious deterioration or abandonment.Cyclical maintenance also makes good sense economically.
Graffiti is less likely to occur if graffitists can be clearly seen.It is often recommended that accessible, graffiti-prone areas be illuminatedwith floodlighting or spotlights. Graffiti may also be reduced or preventedby the presence of security guards, park rangers or police officers, orby the visible presence of surveillance cameras. Publicity about arrestsand punitive measures against the graffitists, and the general vigilanceof the security system may also reduce graffiti.
If they are historically appropriate and compatible with the historicproperty, soft barriers in the form of low, possibly thorny, shrubs andbushes or other forms of landscaping and planting may be effective deterrents.Such plantings can make it difficult to reach the property by any routeother than the approved secure one. Hard barriers provided by fences andtransparent screens or shields, such as clear acrylic or other polycarbonatesheets, may also afford some degree of protection. But these can have anegative aesthetic impact on the property's appearance, particularly ifthe barriers themselves become disfigured by graffiti.
Community Awareness. Community action and education often playan important role in a successful anti-graffiti program. Neighborhood watchescan effectively deter graffitists, and can help police and other securityagencies in the detection and prevention of graffiti. Intensive publiccampaigns against graffiti, including presentations in schools, developingprograms to foster community pride, and sentencing offenders to removegraffiti in their own community can also be useful. Publicity concerningarrests of graffitists can be a useful preventive tool. (But, on the otherhand, frequent newspaper coverage of graffiti outbreaks or even of newcommunity efforts at deterring graffiti can sometimes have the oppositeeffect by challenging the "creativity" of graffitists.) Communitygroups trained in proper cleaning techniques can also assist property ownersin prompt and non-damaging graffiti removal.
