REEDLEY – The city has put a new coat of paint on its graffiti abatement efforts.
On Aug. 25, the Reedley City Council unanimously approved the new Graffiti Abatement Assistance Program, which aims to equip those looking to help remove graffiti. Through this program, the city will provide a “paint kit” and a voucher for discounted paint to encourage residents and business owners who have fallen victim to graffiti on their property.
“Graffiti has a negative impact on our community,” said Public Works Director Russ Robertson in his presentation of the item. “It affects neighborhood appearance, it contributes to perceptions of disorder and unsafe conditions when you have graffiti in our city, and when residents are the victims of graffiti, most of our residents want to clean up the graffiti as soon as possible.”
He added that while some have expressed a desire to participate in graffiti abatement, the supplies needed can create a financial barrier that this program aims to address.
The paint kit will be provided to residents at no cost, and will include a pan, roller and paintbrush. Residents will also receive a voucher for 50% off a gallon of paint, which can be used at either Golden Valley Ace Hardware or Reedley Lumber, both of which have partnered with the city.
In order to get the supplies, residents must report an instance of graffiti which will then be verified by city staff. Staff will then provide the resident with a courtesy notice, paint kit and voucher, and once a voucher has been redeemed at one of the participating businesses, the city will reimburse the business for the remaining 50% of the gallon.
Robertson noted that each voucher will have a number so that they can be tracked, and only be used once. He added that while one gallon covers “90%-95%” of incidents, city staff can issue a second voucher if deemed necessary.
To start, the city has amended the fiscal year 2026-2027 budget to appropriate $5,000 for this program.
During council comments, Mayor Matthew Tuttle asked what would happen if a resident chose the wrong color of paint and requested another voucher. In response, Robertson said that the city’s ordinance for painting over graffiti requires there to be as close to a color match as possible, but said it’s something that could be stated on informational sheets that will be given to residents.
Later in the discussion, Councilmembers Michael Crutchifield and Scott Friesen asked if pressure washing could also be an option for residents to go about graffiti abatement, and if there was any possibility of partnering with local contractors to provide assistance to elderly residents who cannot do the work themselves.
Robertson considered both of these good points, and said that staff can continue to consider alternatives or expansions to the program over time. City Manager Nicole Zieba added on, calling this iteration of the abatement program as the “first evolution.”
“We’ve been talking about doing something about graffiti for some time, and this gets us started on something,” said Zieba in her comments. “Russ (Robertson) and I have talked about analyzing this pilot program in the coming months: How many people are taking advantage of it? How much is it costing us? Is it really popular? Are people going to come up with other ideas that then we can see evolutions?”
Thinking long-term, Robertson also said that staff are looking into developing an operational plan to quickly remove “gang-related” or “anti-police” graffiti that is on private property, but public-facing. Because it would be on private property, he said the potential plan still requires consideration with regards to legality.
In one motion, the council voted 4-0 to approve the program and adjust the budget to fund it, with Councilmember Christopher Arriaga absent. Just before the vote, Tuttle expressed his gratitude for this program’s development while also looking forward to its continued development.
“I really do appreciate this — at least, first — phase and evolving it as well,” said Tuttle. “I’d appreciate looking into furthering phase two … and evolving it with maybe a pressure washing option, like we mentioned, for different surfaces with the intention of just helping a little bit.”
