This Pierce County city has a rash of graffiti, and a solution. Here’s what it plans to do
Something has been stealing Todd Baginski’s time.
The culprit? Graffiti.
“It’s always just a little bit here and there, but it seems like it’s been getting kind of ramped up lately,” Baginski said. “We got so much other things we could be doing. It’s definitely a downer.”
Baginski is the parks groundskeeper for the city of Sumner. On March 30, he spent a portion of his day painting over graffiti on the skate park at the Daffodil Valley Sports Complex at 5604 Graham Ave.
Graffiti has been an on-and-off issue for the city, Community Development Director Ryan Windish said. But the city saw an uptick last fall as well as February of this year. It was done mostly at the skate park.
A death in the community occurred earlier this year, and some of the graffiti was done to memorialize the person, Windish said. The person was a high school student who frequented the sports complex.
“What typically happens with graffiti is once it starts, other people jump on and start doing it,” Deputy Police Chief Andy McCurdy said.
McCurdy said graffiti has almost been “a daily occurrence.” He said it is hard to catch people in the act. The police have identified some students who have done some of the graffiti in town, and they are working with them to try to deter tagging.
In hopes of mitigating the graffiti issue, the city is considering placing a “graffiti wall” next to the skate park. The wall may be up within the next six to 12 months, Windish said. The city currently does not have an estimate for how much the wall will cost.
City staff are in the process of drafting the wall design and cost estimate for the mayor to consider. Windish said the mayor supports the idea.
“It becomes the place where that kind of art is expressed and helps diminish the tendency to put it wherever,” Windish said.
McCurdy grew up in San Francisco and has seen graffiti turn into an issue in his community. Having dedicated walls helped, he said. Other cities in Washington that have some type of graffiti wall include Redmond and Burien.
In addition to the wall, the city is also planning to install more lighting around the sports complex. The city also recently fixed the security camera at the skate park that was malfunctioning, Windish said.
Baginski said removing and painting over graffiti is a top priority for the parks crew. They usually scout the parks first thing in the morning. They usually see graffiti on the skate park as well as the bleachers by the baseball field, he said.
Windish said there are other areas in the city that get tagged. This includes the underside of the Tacoma Avenue Bridge as well as other parks that have playground equipment such as Seibenthaler Park at 1602 Bonney Ave.
People usually tag at night, Windish said. They use spray cans, permanent markers or paint pens. The graffiti includes words, symbols and phrases such as “I love you,” he said.
In the last 12 months, parks crew staff has spent about 190 hours removing graffiti, Windish said. The parks crew is also responsible for maintaining playgrounds, lawns, trails and other things. It has five people, he said.
“They’ve got quite an arsenal of equipment and materials to take care of that, but then it’s taking away time from them doing other important maintenance,” Windish said.
Residents who live nearby do not appreciate the graffiti either. They do not expect to see vandalism at a park they frequent, Baginski said.
“That’s an eyesore,” Baginski said. “It’s an eyesore to anyone but especially the neighbors and community.”
Baginski said the wall is a good idea for those who may want to showcase their artistic abilities, but he is worried that others may just put immature or vulgar things on the wall.
“I don’t know how you’re gonna battle that,” Baginski said.
