Following a wave of anti-immigration graffiti on Evanston’s north side, some aldermen are proposing the creation of a rewards program for citizens who report offenders.
“I think the time has come where we take it more seriously,” Ald. Ann Rainey (8th) said at Monday night’s city council meeting. “It’s a constantly recurring vandalism, and it’s a constant in our budget.”
That idea was presented just after community and economic director Steve Griffin reported graffiti incidents in the city are rising – data partially derived from 311, Evanston’s non-emergency call service. Five thousand tags have already been cited this year, he said.
Griffin added the 311 program has been “quite proactive” in tracking down and removing markings. Still, the Evanston Police Department has been unable to apprehend every offender, he said.
Rainey recommended the city begin offering a monetary award for turning in graffiti artists, touting the effectiveness of a similar effort she spearheaded in her ward several years ago.
“There was some horrible graffiti, and I put out the word that I would give a $100 reward if we could find who this person was,” she said. “And I was able to give away the reward to three young girls who immediately turned in the artist who had done hundreds of dollars of damage.”
In response to Rainey’s proposal, Ald. Coleen Burrus (9th) pitched that firms hit with graffiti could sponsor such a program.
Residents who lament Evanston’s high taxes are unaware of the high costs of graffiti removal, Rainey said.
“Tens of thousands of dollars are drained from the community,” she said.
Griffin said he would discuss with EPD Chief Robert Eddington the possibility of heeding Rainey’s suggestion. Rainey said she had already introduced the idea to him.
