SAN FERNANDO : Council Approves Anti-Graffiti Plan

The San Fernando City Council has approved an anti-graffiti plan that would include curfews for youths and punishment for parents of convicted taggers.

In what they termed a “Palmdale solution,” the council Monday told Police Chief Dominick Rivetti and others to research whether the city could require parents of taggers to pay for their children’s damage.

The city of Palmdale launched such a program in July, and city officials reported that it netted more than $2,000 in two months.

“I’m very comfortable that we will be able to get that worked out here also,” Rivetti told the council.

Rivetti also said he will research the legality of strict nighttime curfews to keep taggers off the streets late at night, when most graffiti painting occurs.

The city spends about $70,000 on anti-graffiti measures and hopes to boost spending by another $10,000, using Community Development Block Grant funds. The money would go toward administering more court-referred work crews, according to city reports.

In addition, the city hopes to generate anti-graffiti revenue by charging property owners who can’t or won’t remove graffiti 25 cents per square foot for city crews to do the job.

In other action, the council approved a $3.1-million renovation plan for Las Palmas Park, over objections by council member Jose Hernandez that the plan does not include a swimming pool.