"I called 311 to report graffiti at 60-45 60th Street in Maspeth on Tuesday, 8/30/11. I was told by the 311 operator that graffiti on this house was already reported via 311 on 4/25/11 (complaint #G71340), and that it was put in the City's cleaning queue. When I inquired as to when the site was scheduled to be cleaned by the City, the operator said he did not have that information.
The City is supposed to remove graffiti within 35 days of it being reported. In addition to "Graffiti Free NYC", there is also the "Mayor's Paint Program" which provides free supplies to volunteer groups that wish to organize cleanups. Yet every time our precinct or GCOP organizes a cleanup, they ask local civic groups to donate money or paint supplies. Why is this, if the City is supposed to be providing it free of charge?
On top of this, council members' discretionary funding is often dedicated to graffiti removal!
If the City is already funding all the paint, labor and supplies through the Mayor's & EDC's program, then why all the redundancy and wasteful spending?
And why, if there is a 35-day deadline, hasn't this location been cleaned after 4 months? There are supposedly 23 graffiti cleaning vans roaming the City. When will one make it over here?" - Christina Wilkinson
13 comments:
Really? Wait all those months for non-action by a government agency to do what neighbors and the owner could do in 10 minutes? Am I crazy? All I read about on these pages is the need for citizens to take action in their neighborhoods and streets, and then I see a post like this. Yeah-- good idea. Keep calling 311. That will get the problem solved.
Its not a business and its not a big apartment building with a politically connected landlord.
Therefor no interest or use of public funds to clean it up.
The city could get rid of graffiti in a heartbeat. Pass a law banning it and turn the meter maids on the case.
The point of the post is that we pay for services that are not being provided, not that neighbors should clean the property. That was also the point of the backlash on the Whitestone Farms story. The City is spending millions of dollars on this program and the work is not getting done. Passing that law was stupid in the first place. Think where all that money could have been spent instead.
It's Queens. It's Maspeth. It is of no account to the currnet NYC administration.
Remember St. Saviour's?
Remember Grand Avenuse truckers?
Remember the trucks that still park illegally off the LIE 69th Street exit?
Remember the floods at Maurice Avenue and the LIE when it rains?
Perhaps we should elect a mayor from the boroughs instead of one from Manhattan. Think of it: Bloomberg, Giuliani, Dinkins, Koch, Lindsey, Wagner....
That's either aluminum or vinyl siding on the house in the photo. How do you technically remove graffiti from those materials? If you paint over, it will look sloppy. Do any siding manufacturers provide paint covering that will make the siding look new again when "bombed"?
Powerwashing.
You're right, Crapper. I should have checked the internet first. Graffiti removal is relatively easy with all kinds of products and old-fashioned elbow-grease.
So the question now is, assuming no health issues, why doesn't that homeowner of the house in the depicted post photo get to work him/herself? Why wait for the city to show up?
Someone once "bombed" the parking sign post outside my house. I immediately painted over the "tag".
Vandalism has to be addressed immediately or it festers and proliferates.
Why does the citizenry give up so easily?
Don't know the answer. The thing is that the homeowner can call it in themselves and the City is supposed to clean it. Let's suppose this person is elderly or homebound and called 311 for help in April. It takes more than 4 months for the City to take action?
Does the city remove graffiti from private property? I know DA Brown's Second Chance Program won't touch private property.
Here's a story for you. I was shopping at a local business and the owner received a call from a cop at the local precinct. They had arrested a graffiti vandal, and this business had graffiti from the perp on the side of the building. The cop asked for some info, specifically whether the perp had permission to write on the building, which he did not. The purpose was to charge the perp with as much vandalism as possible. I was impressed that the police either keep notes of who tags where, or drive around after the fact to look for the perps tag.
Now here's the point. The store owner said the graffiti was there for a long time (years maybe?) and he didn't bother to paint over it because someone else would simply write on the blank wall. Today (it is a damn funny coincidence) I was driving by and noticed that the wall has recently been painted, and there is already new graffiti in several spots. It's pretty much a losing battle for a home or business owner. Paint over, create a tempting blank slate, new vandalism. Rinse and repeat. Remember, there are plenty of kids who write graffiti. Paint over one, another will be happy to fill the space.
Powerwashing crews have worked on buildings in Forest Hills and usually complete the job within 30 days. Brick facades are easier to clean.
So? Don't paint over and give up? Have the used paint brush or paint roller ready in a zip lock bag and first thing in the morning paint over any new graffiti.
The Whitestone Farms property is owned by someone who is a priniciple in a Manahattan brokerage and developement Corp. and is a multimillionaire in his own right. The point is that the Councilman involved in that clean up was unable to use present law or willing to introduce legislation that would force these absentee commercial landlords to clean up there own properties.
Post a Comment