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City of San Antonio
Parks and Recreation Bexar County City of San Antonio is attacking the graffiti problem through a number of different departments. Housing and Neighborhood Services through the Neighborhood Target Sweep Program, continues to provide support to residents and communities in their efforts to create clean, safe, and healthy neighborhoods. Within 24 annual neighborhood sweeps, Housing and Neighborhood Services Department staff coordinates efforts with volunteers from local schools, neighborhood organizations and other areas. These efforts, generated by input from residents and neighborhood leaders, include graffiti abatement, alley cleanup, house painting for the elderly and physically disabled, and vacant lot abatement. Supplies and materials for these efforts come from the City’s Paint Bank and supplies from community donations. The Neighborhood Sweep Program empowers residents to devise neighborhood-based problem solving plans to address graffiti and other issues identified in their community. Parks and Recreation removes graffiti in San Antonio’s 185 parks and 20 designated street corridors or "hot spots." Through the use of restitution workers and volunteers, the City saves more than $3 million a year in labor costs to clean up graffiti in parks and park facilities. Parks and Recreation encourages citizens to volunteer their time to help with graffiti removal or pledge donations to the program for additional tools. For more information on volunteer projects or donations, call 207-8452. Public Works removes graffiti from sidewalks, traffic signs, retaining walls and streets and responds to graffiti reported by citizens via the City’s 311 customer service number or reported by other departments. The department also uses adult and juvenile restitutioners to clean up graffiti. Public Works removes more than 151,000 square feet of graffiti (4 football fields) per year. Additionally, 1500 gallons of concrete paint and 5000 gallons of recycled paint are used by the department to remove graffiti. Environmental Services through its Household Hazardous Waste Facility at 7030 Culebra Road, offers free recycled and reusable paint for graffiti removal projects. The facility is open each Thursday, 10:00 a.m. to 7:00 p.m.; each Friday, 7:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m.; and the first Saturday of every month, 8:00 a.m. to 1:00 p.m. Keep San Antonio Beautiful partners with Environmental Services to coordinate volunteer and neighborhood community improvement projects including graffiti abatement. Interested citizens should call 207-6460 for more information. Office of Cultural Affairs offers free one-hour mural workshops to neighborhood and community groups. Murals are a creative and empowering option to painting over graffiti because they beautify your neighborhood and are a deterrent to future graffiti. A community mural can establish ownership of the art piece among neighborhood residents and help to restore community pride. For information on mural workshops, call 207-6965. San Antonio Police Department utilizes San Antonio Fear Free Environment (SAFFE) Officers assigned to specific areas or neighborhoods to work closely with residents and district patrol officers to prevent graffiti to establish and maintain day-to-day interaction with residents and businesses to prevent crimes like graffiti before they occur. SAFFE officers also act as liaisons with other City agencies, work closely with schools and youth programs, coordinate graffiti-removal activities, and serve as resources to residents who wish to take back their neighborhoods from crime and decay. Bexar County and its Infrastructure Services Department (335-6700) works to eradicate graffiti whenever found or reported. Using available products, staff attempts to remove it or, in most cases, paint over it. If graffiti is found on public signs, removal is attempted or the signs are replaced. The Sheriff’s Department (335-6010) apprehends graffiti offenders and works with Infrastructure Services and the District Attorney’s Office to estimate the cost of graffiti removal. The District Attorney’s Office (335-2311) then charges the offender for the cost of the removal. The County’s Juvenile Probation Department (531-1000) partners with the City’s Parks and Recreation and the Public Works Departments to utilize juvenile offenders for graffiti cleanup as part of their restitution. This department also helps private citizens with graffiti abatement. CPS Energy regards graffiti as an important safety issue. When spray paint is found on electrical or gas equipment, the situation can become dangerous. CPS Energy urges citizens to call 353-2222 if graffiti is found on any CPS Energy equipment or property. Citizens should not try to clean the area themselves. CPS Energy has specialized crews that are familiar with electrical or gas equipment to ensure that graffiti is safely removed. San Antonio Water System (SAWS) is committed to removing graffiti from its facilities within seven days from the date of occurrence. SAWS urges all citizens to help their public agencies control the problem by immediately reporting any graffiti activity to the appropriate authorities. SAWS can be reached at 704-SAWS. This is a quality of life issue for all San Antonio citizens as well as those visiting our city. SAWS is proud to participate in this initiative. VIA Metropolitan Transit is responsible for graffiti removal on VIA facilities, bus shelters, benches and on buses. Graffiti can be found on seats or even etched into bus windows. Tagged VIA property should be reported to 362-2020. VIA maintains shelters up to three times a week and makes special maintenance calls and repairs as needed. Through the Adopt-A-Bus-Shelter Program, corporate, group, or individual volunteers are responsible for assisting with the upkeep of a bus shelter between VIA’s scheduled maintenance and are encouraged to notify VIA of vandalism that may take place on those shelters. For information on how to adopt a shelter, call VIA’s Public Affairs Office at 362-2370. has four maintenance sections in San Antonio that are responsible for the maintaining all state highways within the city limits. One of the many responsibilities is the removal of graffiti from the state right-of-way. Supervisors and work crews patrol the sections daily and take note of newly-placed graffiti. Locations are listed and prioritized and plans are then made to have the graffiti removed as soon as possible. TxDOT's goal is to remove graffiti within 30 days. In the event the traveling public should spot graffiti along the highway, they should contact the TxDOT District Office at 615-5856 to report the location. We will then forward that information to the appropriate maintenance office for further action. |
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