Rash of City Hall Graffiti : Vandalism: The outbreak coincides with the arrival of teen-agers taking part in two work experience programs.

The arrival of hundreds of youths recruited for two city-funded work experience programs coincided with a rash of vandalism at City Hall--including carvings of nicknames and slogans in mirrors, beveled-glass windows and brass panels in the building’s tower, officials said Wednesday.

Leaders of the youth programs strongly denied suggestions by some city officials that a handful of the young employees may be responsible. But the director of one of the groups has acknowledged in a bluntly worded letter to teen-agers in the program: “It is clear that (youth) workers are doing the majority of the tagging and graffiti.”

In her letter, Gloria Sosa, director of the Youth Service Academy, also warned that the program may be discontinued if the problem continues.

Mayor Tom Bradley cautioned against assuming that the outbreak is the work of teen-agers in the Youth Service Academy and the Summer Youth Employment Program, which have 500 students working full time and part time at City Hall.

Bradley defended the programs, which he said “give at-risk youths . . . in danger of dropping out of school the necessary skills to compete in the work force.”

However, on Wednesday he also called for an investigation to determine who is responsible for the destruction.

Hardest hit was the top floor of the City Hall Tower, where maintenance crews discovered nicknames and other words gouged, possibly with knives, into beveled-glass windows, bathroom walls and oak doors.

“I’m terribly concerned and disturbed by this,” said Georgia Rosenberry, who heads a nonprofit corporation conducting a $10-million restoration of the 65-year-old building. Without singling out the youths for blame, she added: “It’s unbelievable that those who are destroying neighborhoods throughout the city are now attacking City Hall--a precious historic landmark and symbol.”

Although City Hall always has a smattering of graffiti, such vandalism is relatively rare in the tower, which has been a popular tourist attraction because of its breathtaking 360-degree view of the Civic Center below.

To prevent additional damage, the tower was closed three weeks ago by order of the city’s General Services Department to all but escorted tours, city officials said.

Delphia Jones, director of Operation Clean Sweep, the city program that handles some of the graffiti removal at City Hall, said the timing of the vandalism casts suspicion on the youths.

“There seems to be a correlation between the time (newly hired students) arrived here and the increase in vandalism,” Jones said. “We started noticing it a few months ago when maintenance crews became overwhelmed with new graffiti and vandalism.”

Ed Hunter, construction and maintenance superintendent at City Hall, agreed. “The escalation in graffiti started when the work training program youths came on board,” Hunter said. “Our graffiti removal workload has increased 10% over the past three months.”

However, Jones emphasized that she suspects only a handful of the youths defaced the building.

Manuel Rico, assistant director of the Summer Youth Employment Program, defended his students, saying, “Every time something happens, they point the finger at our kids because they are disadvantaged youths.”

To be on the safe side, Rico said, his group plans next year to “include stronger language in a handbook we give our kids explaining behavior expected on the job.”

Olivia Mitchell, director of the Mayor’s Office of Youth Development, which monitors the Youth Service Academy, also suggested that it is unfair to blame the students because graffiti has been an “ongoing problem at City Hall for years.”

Nevertheless, Youth Service Academy Director Sosa on March 18 sent a letter to each of the students in her program, warning: “Stop the tagging and graffiti now or else YSA may stop! Any YSA worker caught tagging or writing graffiti will be terminated immediately.”

Victor Hermosillo, a 17-year-old high school student hired in July to work as a data processor in the city treasurer’s office, said the accusations were “unfair because they really don’t know who is doing it.”

“Why blame us?” added Claudia Noriega, a 16-year-old high school student who works beside Hermosillo in the treasurer’s office.

The city’s Department of Water and Power spent $5 million in 1990 to fund the Youth Service Academy, which sponsors teen-agers who work for the city while attending vocational training classes and career guidance sessions, officials said.

Similarly, the federally funded Summer Youth Employment Program offers credit to students who work and attend classes simultaneously.

Both programs aim to prepare students for the transition from school to the workplace by providing professional help from city employees who serve as their mentors.

The sight of graffiti-marred mirrors and windows disappointed a group touring the City Hall Tower on Wednesday.

“Well I’ll be dogged,” William Killingsworth said, shaking his head sadly. “I didn’t expect to see that junk way up here.”