Public Works removes more than 4 million square feet per year from areas visible from the right of way. The Abatement Crew of 11 staff members work Monday through Friday from 6:00 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. An abatement contractor works on weekends and holidays to maintain a graffiti removal schedule seven days a week.

The Abatement Crew utilizes five paint colors to remove graffiti that are similar to most painted surfaces in the City. The five colors are:

Grey, White, Navajo, Brown and Rustic

Vista Paints offers a discount on the five city colors; call (714) 540-8282 for pricing information.

Water blasting of specialized surfaces instead of painting to remove graffiti is also available by three trucks within the Public Works Abatement Crew fleet.

For more information on graffiti removal, please call Danell Mercado at (714) 647-3308.

Tips for reporting to the Graffiti Hotline:

• Have the location of graffiti – street, intersection and address, if possible.
• Have the type of surface that the graffiti is on - block wall, wood fence, light pole, sign, etc.
• Give us your name and phone number so a supervisor can call you back if the crew is unable to locate the graffiti or has follow-up questions.
  

Graffiti Removal in Parks

Personnel from the Parks Division of the Parks, Recreation and Community Services Agency, inspect and identify graffiti on park sites, bike trails, recreation centers, and senior centers each day. It is eradicated as quickly as possible using a variety of methods, including painting over and sand/water blasting. Of course special care is taken when removing graffiti from live plants and trees. The Agency graffiti removal staff is equipped with high power water blasters and a variety of paint colors.

The Agency has managed the Court Referral and Graffiti Removal Program for more than 15 years. The program provides first time juvenile graffiti offenders with the opportunity to complete their assigned community service hours in a supervised setting. The youth are referred to the program by the Santa Ana Police Department in collaboration with the Institute for Conflict Management, the Orange County Probation Department and the Volunteer Center of Orange County. Upon completion of their assigned hours, the youth receive a completion report which they then take to the referring agency.

The Community Affairs Division of the Agency has a volunteer component. Frequently community groups and neighborhood associations request the opportunity to “give back” to the City by adopting a park. The Adopt-A-Park events are general clean up activities which usually include graffiti removal, painting of park furniture and playground equipment, planting vines and shrubs, litter removal, etc. These events are often co-sponsored by businesses that provide the funding to purchase equipment, plant material, and refreshments. Graffiti removal is an important part of these events. Removing graffiti encourages residents to feel “ownership” and to take pride in their local park, and is a beneficial community action in that it encourages a partnership with residents, businesses and the City of Santa Ana.