City Council receives update on graffiti ordinance

By Doug Spoon, Editor

Perhaps the most visible reminder of the City of Menifee’s ongoing efforts to wipe out graffiti in the city is the giant unfinished Krikorian Theater wall in Menifee Town Center. Graffiti on a large portion of the wall, visible from Newport Road, is covered in gray paint -- albeit, less than an ideal color match with the yellow foam blocks.

Nonetheless, the graffiti was covered up within a day of its appearance last year. And for the most part, graffiti throughout the city is being quickly monitored and removed, the Menifee City Council was told this week in a review of the city’s graffiti ordinance.

At the request of council members, Code Enforcement Officer Terrence Wiggins of the Menifee Police Department provided an update on the ordinance and the penalties it carries for offenders. No action was taken on this item, which was presented as simply a review of the existing policy, both for the information of council members and the public.

Per the city’s ordinance, graffiti must be removed by the property owner within 72 hours. This time period is sometimes extended when it takes longer to track down a property owner who lives out of the area. An emergency clause of the ordinance allows the city to perform the removal and bill the owner for the cost.

Penalties for those violating the graffiti ordinance range from $100 for the first offense to $500 for the third offense and beyond. In most cases, Wiggins said, the focus is on removal because it’s difficult to catch violators in the act.

In an attempt to find and punish these individuals, Menifee police officers use a tracker app on their phones, in which they can post photos and compare them to previous photos in attempts to establish a pattern and identify criminals.

Owners of property where graffiti is found are notified by letter, in case they are not present on site. They then have the option of receiving a free gallon of paint from Sherman Williams to cover the graffiti.

To report graffiti seen within the city limits, residents may use the City of Menifee app; call the Menifee PD non-emergency line at 951-677-4964; or call the Code Enforcement Department at 951-246-6214.