Banishing signs of public vandalism

Clark County hires company to clean graffiti

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Driving down Maryland Parkway even a year ago, residents would have noticed layers upon layers of spray paint and other forms of graffiti on Clark County property, including light poles, traffic signal poles and control boxes.

But for the last seven months, a private contractor has been cutting through the layers and bringing a cleaner look to what Gary Loberg, program manager for Clark County graffiti abatement, calls county furniture.

"It dresses the area up," Loberg said.

Mike Kightlinger is on the front lines of the graffiti battle. He owns American Graffiti, the company hired to control graffiti on county property in what is known as the Resort Corridor.

On a recent morning, Kightlinger used a pretreating spray and a high-powered steam cleaner to remove white lettering from a stop sign as he demonstrated his company's methods. His truck is equipped with a tank of water for the steam cleaner, as well as cans of paint to match all of the different surfaces he maintains for the county and other customers.

"The idea is to leave it as close to its original state as possible," Kightlinger said.

He much prefers removing the graffiti completely, as opposed to covering it up, but in the early stages of the county contract, he painted many of the poles with matching silver paint to create the appearance of a fresh new surface.

Although another contractor, Graffiti Control Systems, handles Las Vegas Boulevard itself, Kightlinger and his employees work on 36 miles of streets south of Sahara Avenue, north of Russell Road, west of Eastern Avenue and east of Valley View Boulevard.

The county contract is worth $258,000 per year for Graffiti Control Systems' work on the Strip and $768,000 per year for American Graffiti's work on the surrounding streets. Both contracts could be renewed up to four times.

Residents may still see many flyers and graffiti on utility poles in those areas, but those are the ones owned by utility companies. Loberg said he would love for those companies to join with the county in paying for and using the private contractors, but so far there has been no interest.

Nevada Power does take an interest in graffiti control, however. Sonya Headen, spokeswoman for Nevada Power, said the company is a member of the Southern Nevada Graffiti Coalition and has one full-time staff member dedicated to graffiti control. The company also has its own graffiti hotline.

Loberg said county leaders would love to be able to expand the more intense anti-graffiti efforts to cover much more of the valley, but by law, the room tax money used to pay for the private contractors in the Resort Corridor must be used in areas zoned for hotels.

"Tourists foot most of the bill," Loberg said.

Out-of-towners also are part of the motivation for keeping areas around the Strip graffiti-free. Loberg said county leaders regard tourists as their bread and butter. They don't want the Strip and nearby areas to be uninviting in any way to visitors.

County employees had been handling the graffiti on their own up until about a year ago, when officials decided to hire private contractors as the problem continued to escalate.

"We were having such a bad time, especially around the Resort Corridor," Loberg said.

Kightlinger said he sees graffiti produced by all types of people as he makes his rounds -- gang members, taggers, and those who consider themselves artists.

It's important to have a system in keeping up with graffiti, he said. Cleaning it off properly once can act as a deterrent. When graffiti artists see that someone cared enough to clean it up properly, they are less likely to try it in the same place again, Kightlinger said. They're also less likely to try it again if they know it will be cleaned off within a day.

"It's like a cockroach. You have to be more consistent than it and you have to have discipline," Kightlinger said.

The county's punishment for graffiti can result in one to four years in prison under a gross misdemeanor charge if damages total between $250 and $500. Damages that total $500 to $5,000 warrant a felony charge and possible more than four years in prison.

Clark County graffiti abatement specialist Darryl Kresser said discouraging graffiti in the first place is difficult when it is considered socially acceptable. He cited the video game Contents Under Pressure, in which the object is to place as much graffiti as possible. He also mentioned a commercial that depicted graffiti artists relaxing with a beer after a long night of "work."

Cases of graffiti continue to climb. Kresser said the county handled 5,000 cases in 2000 and 7,428 cases in 2005.

Loberg said he has been pleased with the work of private contractors and predicts the county will continue to employ them.

To report graffiti on county property, call 455-5333. To report graffiti on Nevada Power property, call 227-2021.