BURBANK : Committee Working to Clean Up Graffiti
Before there was a beautification committee in Burbank, there was Mike Cunningham and his Cadillac, erasing graffiti from city streets on his own.
Cunningham had been quietly tackling graffiti years before the city got involved, but now that a “Burbank Spic and Span” is held four times a year, he’s become outspoken on the importance of volunteering for the Saturday morning cleanup.
“This is their obligation,” Cunningham said. “Forget about government doing it for you. Get out there and take care of your own hometown.”
On July 24 at 8 a.m., volunteers for the Burbank Beautification Committee will meet for the cleanup at the parking lot of the Burbank Board of Realtors on West Magnolia Boulevard. They will split into teams and for three hours find and eradicate graffiti throughout the city, using paint, thinner and rags.
“Burbank is an oasis, because there are citizens and groups that care about the city and keep off the graffiti,” said Dan Soderstrom, chairman of the beautification committee.
A lot of the tagging in Burbank hits Elmwood Avenue, Clybourn Avenue at the border with North Hollywood, Victory Boulevard, and sometimes along Magnolia Boulevard, Soderstrom said. Trash bins and bus shelters are favorite targets.
“I have to say the faster you erase it, the less you’re going to get,” Cunningham aid.
The Burbank Beautification Committee can be reached at 843-1161.
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