Inside the April 2008 issue:

Vigo County Graffiti, Terre Haute Gaffiti, Wabash Valley Graffiti

A big mess: Tim Popoff and his daughter examine graffiti on the back of Popoff Cleaners at 1519 Wabash Ave. Popoff said that the taggers even climbed onto his roof to paint his air conditioning unit. WVJB photos by James Hehman

By Timothy A. Brown
WVJB Writer

     For some, it's a work of art. For others, it's just another messy problem that needs to be cleaned up.
     That problem is graffiti, and the problem is growing nationwide.
     People who actively engage in graffiti call it "art" and "tagging," terms that stem from street gangs who paint their signs on property to claim the territory.
     Property and business owners who have to spend the money to clean up the "art" have another word for it: vandalism.
     According the Journal of Property Management web site, last year, graffiti cost taxpayers nationwide approximately $10-$12 billion in cleanup costs. This does not include the rising cost of insurance, the installation of surveillance equipment or business lost due to the defacing of business properties.
     Indiana law defines graffiti as being any unauthorized inscription, work, figure or design that is marked, etched, drawn or painted on a component of any building, structure or other facility (IC 35-41-1-12.3).
     Tim Popoff, owner of Popoff Cleaners at 1519 Wabash Ave., has found that it is not only a growing problem but a repetitive problem as well.
     "I paint over the graffiti and then they [the vandals], just tag the building again," he said. "I have no choice but to clean up the graffiti. Nobody wants to see some of the vulgarities that have been spray painted on my building."
     Painting over the graffiti is usually the only solution. The combination of spray paint and concrete, brick or other masonry is usually permanent.
"I tried to power-wash the stuff off, but that doesn't work," Popoff said. "You have to paint over it and that can get very expensive. I have to paint my entire building to cover it up. They even found a way onto the roof and spray painted the air conditioning unit."
     A Google search on graffiti would seem to would-be taggers their "art" is a positive cultural force. Web sites display graffiti as a high art form, exalting some tags at masterpieces. There are even photographs of major art exhibitions of graffiti at respected museums, such as the Museum of Modern Art in New York.
     Other web sites actually offer advice on painting techniques and even offer suggestions for stealing paint.
     "Most home owner's or business insurance policies will cover acts of vandalism," said Rick Long, an agent with Farm Bureau Insurance and a commercial property owner himself.
     "The problem is that most policy holders will pay for the cleanup out of their own pockets," Long said. "The cost is usually cheaper than the deductible plus the fact that the more claims that are filed, the higher the premiums become and insurance companies will only accept so many claims in a given time before they terminate a policy."
     Long further explains that insurance companies would seek to be reimbursed for the cleanups if the perpetrators of the vandalism were caught, but because of the nature of the crime, graffiti taggers have to be caught in the act.
     The cost of the cleanup combined with the repetitive nature of the crimes takes it toll on many property owners. Often, they can no longer afford to continue cleaning up the graffiti or find the entire effort futile since they will be tagged again.
     "It's frustrating," said Popoff. "It seems like nobody wants to do anything about it. It appears that there are plenty of police on the streets, but they seem to be more interested in arresting people coming out of the bars instead of catching the vandals."
     Under Indiana law, the act of graffiti vandalism is considered as criminal mischief and can be a Class A misdemeanor, or a Class D felony if the pecuniary loss is at least $250 but less than $2,500 or a Class C felony if the pecuniary loss is $2,500 or more. Individuals who are found guilty may also have their driver's license suspended or invalidated by the Bureau of Motor Vehicles for up to a year although the courts may rescind that penalty if the vandal removes or paints over the graffiti or makes other suitable restitution, and the person who is victimized is satisfied with the vandals' efforts at compensation.
     Rather than waiting for the vandals to be caught, one Terre Haute resident is trying to do something about Graffiti.
     For the past two years, Neil Garrison, Fifth District Terre Haute City Councilman, has been working with kids from Ryves Hall Youth Center, trying to clean up the mess.
     Garrison's group, Graffiti Busters, is starting its third season of cleaning up and painting over graffiti throughout the city and county as well as picking up trash.
     Each year, Graffiti Busters works with a number of volunteer groups, college students and area youths to clean up the city. Garrison either gets the paint donated--often paint cans with just a bit left in the bottom--or he pays for the paint himself. Occasionally, someone will donate some money to help cover the cost.
     However, Graffiti Busters is just a temporary fix for a chronic problem. To fix the problem there would need to be a crackdown by local police and possible city or county government intervention.
     "We're not sure if it is gang related or not," said Garrison.
"I think it might just be a group of kids who are bored," said Popoff. "But they still need to be caught."
     According to one student, "Jimmy," whose real name is being withheld, graffiti is popular with students, at least in the virtual world.    Jimmy attends Chauncey Rose Middle School, where he claims students are highly interested in various web sites devoted to the topic.
     "Kids like to go to graffiticreator.net," Jimmy said. "[The website] is allowed at school. You can design and talk about your graffiti [at the site] and even the teachers do it."
     Graffiticreator.net allows anyone to enter text and create their own graffiti tags online. Despite the site's repeated claim that graffiti is a form of art, the site also contained a discussion forum with a thread explaining ways to sneak around without getting caught and even how to steal the spray paint.
     "I would hope that the people responsible would have more respect for people and their property," said Long. "It is a shame that we are having this problem in our community, and it really is a sign of disrespect for others. Some of the graffiti exposes people and children to foul language. Stores have to raise their prices to cover the cost of repairing the vandalism, and it makes the property look shoddy."
     "Graffiti affects the image of the community and may mean the difference between a business deciding to locate here or not," said Garrison. "That negative dirty image is the greatest cost of the graffiti problem."
     Garrison notes that most of the Graffiti simply isn't that impressive.
"Almost all of the 'art' is nothing but gang-sign wannabes, obscene words and initials," he said. "Very little of it is anything I would call art." Garrison has a background in commercial art and marketing.
     According to San Diego's police website ( www.sandiego.gov/police), there are steps that can be taken to help prevent and stop graffiti vandalism.
     For merchants, these steps would include posting signs at the paint displays stating the penalties for graffiti vandalism and assuring that paint cans and other tools, like indelible markers, are in view of store employees and protected from theft.
     For individuals, the site recommends that property owners remove any graffiti on their property immediately. Parents should educate their children about graffiti and the penalties if they are caught. Report the crime to local authorities as well as report anyone known to commit vandalism. The site also suggests that property owners help their neighbors watch out for their property and clean it up if they are victimized.
     If you observe your property being vandalized, do not try to catch tagger yourself. Instead get a good description of the suspect and any vehicle he or she may be using. Immediately call the police to come and take a report, even if you have no information on the vandals. Also, be sure to take photos of the graffiti for use in any future prosecution of the case.
     Garrison said he will be addressing the Terre Haute Parks & Recreation Board on Wednesday, April 23, to discuss the possibility of creating a graffiti park. The idea came from a message left by a tagger.
     "The message said, 'you keep painting over our work. Give us a place of our own to paint, and we'll stop,'" Garrison recalled. "Someone is trying to tell us something."
     Anyone wishing to volunteer time to help paint over graffiti or to offer donations of old paint or money can contact Garrison

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