City OKs New, Faster Anti-Graffiti Project

The Los Angeles City Council on Tuesday approved a $500,000 pilot project for a faster, more aesthetic anti-graffiti program that will target areas of the San Fernando Valley and Los Angeles.

The project, named “Zero Tolerance,” will use quick-mix paint machines mounted on trucks and employ professional graffiti cleaners instead of community service work crews to swiftly eradicate graffiti.

“ ‘Zero Tolerance’ means two things,” said Delphia Jones, director of the city’s Operation Clean Sweep program. “First, we can remove it within 24 hours and, second, it will look like it was never there.”

Slated to begin in October, the six-month project will focus on areas that are victimized by graffiti in low-, moderate- and high-frequency doses. For the pilot project, there is one geographic area for each category.

In the Valley, a part of Mission Hills has been identified as a low-frequency area for the pilot project, Jones said. This area encompasses Rinaldi Street to the north, Lassen Street to the south, the San Diego Freeway to the west and the Golden State Freeway to the east.

Portions of Reseda and Northridge have been selected as the moderate-frequency area for the project. The area includes Parthenia Street to the north, Sherman Way to the south, Wilbur Avenue to the west and Lindley Avenue to the east.

The high-frequency graffiti zone is in the Los Angeles basin, with the Hollywood Freeway to the north, Olympic Boulevard to the south, Figueroa Street to the east and Alvarado Street to the west.

Jones would not disclose the number of graffiti incidents used as criteria to categorize such areas. However, she said that each area is currently visited daily by her cleanup crews.

Unlike previous efforts, where cleanup crews can take up to three days to respond to a graffiti complaint, the “Zero Tolerance” program will not utilize work crews on community service.

Instead, Jones said each zone will operate a “Pro Paint” truck manned by a professional graffiti cleaner. Each truck uses a computer to mix the paint to match the vandalized surface.

“No more patch-quilt look,” Jones explained.

Public and private buildings, from freeway on-ramps to businesses, will be targeted during the program, which will kick off at daybreak. Residents will be given a toll-free number to report graffiti complaints and work crews will cruise their area in a crisscross pattern to spot problem sites.

If successful, Jones said her department will examine whether to expand the program to other areas of the city.