The City of Prince George unveiled a program Friday aimed at combating graffiti.
The program, Graffiti Free PG, provides the labour and supplies to paint over graffiti on private and business property at no cost. Property owners can apply by filling out a form on the city's website.
"We need to send a message to people who don't care about their community as deeply as the rest of us do that this city is not available to them for destructive vandalism," said Mayor Shari Green.
"It's got a social cost, it's got an economic cost and we really do need to raise awareness about it and also the timely removal of it, because when it stays up for a long time that leads to other issues."
Studies have shown that when graffiti markings are left unattended for as little as a week, there's an almost 100 per cent chance additional graffiti will show up nearby, Green said.
"If you cover it up immediately, it sends a strong message that this wall isn't available," she said. Green added that graffiti can also be connected to gang activity.
RCMP Cpl. Craig Douglass said that graffiti can also make tourists and residents believe an area is more dangerous than it actually is.
The program, a partnership between the city, Enhance PG, GroundWork PG and Downtown Prince George, was borne from a recommendation from the Mayor's Task Force on Crime, which was established to look at the comparatively higher crime rate in the city. A total of $20,000 has been allocated to pay for supplies and labour.
"This is the first time it's been done in our community," Green said. "So if it's a successful program, we're going to want to definitely ensure we allocate some funds each year through our public safety initiatives to make sure it's a sustainable program."
Providing the labour for the project is GroundWork PG, which provides employment opportunities for men who are transitioning from incarceration into the community. Justin Foster, the organization's program co-ordinator, said the project would have a positive effect for those men.
"By being out in the community and giving back, we're showing Prince George that these guys may have committed a crime at one point but they've [paid] their debt to society and here they are giving back and showing that they can be part of our community," he said.
The program was announced at Blackburn Community Hall, where the GroundWork labourers painted over a back wall with graffiti. Green said the location was chosen for a specific purpose: the city has pockets of graffiti everywhere, not just in the city centre.
"People who are participating in graffiti are looking for places that are a little bit hidden when they can spend some time and not be noticed," she said, pointing out that the back wall faced out toward a field where nobody could see it. "If this is unattended, it just sends a signal to the [vandal] that they have just come back tomorrow and do it again because clearly nobody cares."
