Angela grew up in Beaumont-Wilshire and raised a family here. She’s an active BWNA board member who has made tackling graffiti and garbage cleanup in the neighborhood a personal mission. Here she responds to some questions about her efforts.
How long have you been doing graffiti cleanup in B-W?
I’ve been doing garbage and graffiti cleanup for the past several years.
What inspired you to take on reducing neighborhood graffiti?
Beaumont-Wilshire is a neighborhood and community I love. Since the pandemic, things have gotten worse. When I drive home, I don’t want to see trash and graffiti. Neither do most of us. I can complain, or I can roll up my sleeves and help. I am an avid walker, so when I walk, I carry a spray bottle of cleaning solution and towels and focus on Fremont Street.
Has the City of Portland been helpful? If so, in what ways?
The city has offered graffiti kits and free paint vouchers. We’ve passed out graffiti kits to several businesses on Fremont and to fellow community members. They also offer businesses and residents the ability to sign a Graffiti Removal Service Agreement (tinyurl.com/3s5tarey). Once signed, the city will come out and remove graffiti for you if it’s a barrier for you to remove it yourself.
Have others been involved in helping with graffiti cleanup?
We are just getting started on more coordinated efforts. A small group of us kicked things off by heading out on a cool rainy morning and made some good progress. I think the model of Adopt One Block is wonderful for trash pickup. I would like to see a similar model for graffiti in our neighborhood. (See the article “Adopt One Block” on page 15 of the May-June 2023 BWNA newsletter: tinyurl.com/444hwk58)
Do you see any reduction in new graffiti since you’ve begun this work?
Yes. In the area I clean, things are slowing a bit. While it’s not uncommon for taggers to come behind me and mark, I keep at it in hopes that we continue to see a reduction.
What can others do to help you?
If each of us tackles graffiti on our routes in the neighborhood, we could make a huge impact. Youth groups interested in service projects would be great, too.
What else would you like to tell B-W readers about this?
It can feel frustrating, and I hear folks say the taggers will just come back. I like to think that WE as a community will keep coming back, too. This is a place where we live together, work together, and play together, so let’s all do our part to keep it the beautiful place we all love.