LETTERS : Graffiti Is Changing the Face of Redondo

Graffiti vandals have Redondo Beach residents under siege. The apartment complex I live in has become very efficient at painting over the graffiti. The vandals usually hit at night and we normally have it painted over within a day. But it is a losing battle; the graffiti bandits are back within a week. Sometimes the very same day the graffiti has been painted over, the vandals are back before the paint is even dry. The constant repainting has the buildings in the area looking like checkerboards with different shades of paint covering the gang’s moniker. This is not in one of Los Angeles’ most blighted areas, but here in Redondo Beach.

I have lived in my current apartment complex for over nine years. Redondo seemed to be a nice clean neighborhood back then. I was proud of where I lived; now I am ashamed to bring anyone home. I can picture people saying, or at least thinking, “What kind of a neighborhood do you live in?,” “Will my car be safe here?” or “Are there any drug deals going on out there?”

We are not to the point where drive-by shootings are a common occurrence, but Redondo Beach has deteriorated quite a bit. It has happened so slowly we never noticed it at first, but like the hands on a clock, which seem to be still, their position does indeed change. And Redondo Beach is not what it once was. It is time to do something.

I have read in the paper about how other cities have tried to deal with their graffiti problems. They have tried to rub it out. They’ve tried to paint it out. They have tried to snoop it out with special surveillance teams armed with video cameras and radios. And they’ve tried to get citizens involved by creating toll-free numbers. But lack of witnesses still presents a barrier to successful graffiti prosecutions. I am not an expert in this area but I do believe an ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure. If Redondo Beach acts now it will not face much-bigger problems in the years to come.

Cash rewards for information leading to arrest and conviction sound like a good place to start. You can’t punish or rehabilitate what you can’t catch. Education in the schools is another good place to start. Students should be asked to discuss the effects graffiti has on a neighborhood--what it does to property values, business in the neighborhood and neighborhood pride.

In the campaign against littering years ago, the word “litterbug” came into use. After a time, people’s personal pride came into play and no one wanted to be called a litterbug. Graffiti tagger is much too polite a term; it almost sounds like you could be proud of your accomplishments. The dumbest thing I ever heard is the term “graffiti art.” If it is done as an art exhibit it is one thing; when it is done to someone else’s property it is “graffiti vandalism.”

I hope Redondo Beach finds the answer to this problem before it really gets out of hand. I don’t own any land so it would be easy for me to just move, but that doesn’t solve the problem. It may hit the next place I live in a few years and besides, someday I would like to buy a house and have some roots. Let us all work together aggressively to stop the destruction of our neighborhoods.

LARRY OLIVETO

Redondo Beach

A Plea for Greater PV Voter Awareness

As we approach local elections in the fall of ‘93, residents of the Palos Verdes Peninsula must become informed. We cannot become apathetic and think that government is solely the function of elected officials and bureaucrats. Today’s economy mandates vigilance.

The city of Rancho Palos Verdes is facing the severest financial crisis in its history. Recreational programs have been terminated. Income is insufficient to maintain the infrastructure. The safety of its citizens is a prime concern, yet funding for fire and police is being slashed by the state and county. Developers are seeking to lift the building moratorium in the landslide area. The City Council will consider the resolution regarding this request on July 20.

Our schools are eking out a bare-bones existence. Yet the student population of an already overcrowded high school will increase this fall for the first time in several years. Housing prices are down, making the Peninsula more affordable for families with children. But can our schools meet their needs? Peninsula test scores have dropped in recent years.

All of these issues are extremely important. I encourage all citizens to attend city council, school board and library board meetings.

Ignorance is not bliss. It is disaster.

BARBARA FERRARO

Rancho Palos Verdes

The South Bay section of The Times welcomes all viewpoints from readers about South Bay issues. Letters should be as brief as possible and are subject to condensation. They must include signature, valid mailing address and telephone number, if any. Pseudonyms and initials will not be used. Send letters to: South Bay Section Editor, Los Angeles Times, 23133 Hawthorne Blvd., Suite 200, Torrance, Calif. 90505.