Some updates, 777 Valencia, 195 Lexington

777 Valencia looks like it is going to be nice.   This was an empty building for at least a year, and of course it got badly covered with graffiti, but they are doing a nice job renovating in, and I hear that it is going to be some type of New Orleans Preservation Hall West site, with a restaurant.    This morning they were painting over the graffiti that has long marred the side of the building.

195 Lexington, still is not very cooperative.   Only after that building had the same graffiti from May to October, and was reported by me  with photographic evidence of having the same graffiti and not being cleaned, did the owners do a part way job of cleaning the graffiti.   They painted the side of the building but left the graffiti on the windows.

Hiccup

Hicups along the way

I believing in this cell phone camera technology, link to twitter can change the urban environment.     I say thinking that there are bound to be some hicups.  Me gripping now about a difficulty is just an stumble that has to happen in a new project.

I reported this graffiti over a month ago, and today sent in a 30daytimeis up message.   SF311 replied

It is too hard to provide SF311 with the SR.   Sometimes, I can look them up, it takes time.   And it would seems that the SF311 would have better access to look up the Service Request.    

Alternate idea is when SF311 sends a tweet back about a service request, that it also include the address in the same tweet.   Then a search by either the address or the SR would give one immediate answer.

Op Ed. addopt a program of city cleans the graffiti after owner gives permission / release liablity

After becoming a graffitweeter, I found out that several Cities have gone to a model that seems to get the graffiti cleaned off buildings much quicker, and have much lower overhead administrative costs, than the system of fine the property owner, e.g. New York, Denver, Chula Vista.

In San Francisco, the system is that complaint driven.   And after, someone like me, makes a complaint about graffiti on a building, the City is supposed to in  48 hours inspect, post a notice, send a letter to the owner, give the owner 30.   Reinspect.

A bunch of times, I'm finding out the City does not send out the notice.   A bunch of times, the City closed the request with the graffiti still in place.   And there are a bunch of times when five months after the report no graffiti has been cleaned.    Likely after a few months of graffiti being on a building, the pro-graffiti taggers think that they "own" that space, and new graffiti will be tagged within a week of the cleanup.

So the likely result is even with someone making reports, graffiti is going to be on the building for 90 percent of the time.   And there are a lot of overhead costs of inspection.  hearings, aggravation when the City closes reports without taking action.

Also, there is a definite aspect of making the victim of graffiti pay for the crime, while the City is partly to blame because it has not been good about trying to stop graffiti itself.

That's reasons why I would support the type of program they have in Denver and New York where if the owner chooses to sign the City a permission / release of liability form, the City will paint out the graffiti.

(This is a quick note, I'd write it more carefully if I thought many peeps would read it.

Yah, I've said it before, but some others helping would would be great.

You know, things have improved..   But its not yet up to a 50 percent improvement.   Best way is to find others who will also report graffiti.

Ambient Change

spell check does not like ambiental, but I do.
I'm trying for an ambiental change in the Mission Cityscape.

How will I know when that will happen?   I think I'll know, and I'm seeing progress, but I'm going to ahead of time make a objective marker.   To be able for two days in a row walk around the block bordered by  18th,  19th,  Valencia and Mission Sts and not see graffiti.   Something about grimy sidewalks too.

I'm not limiting my reports to that single block, and don't plan to stop if I achieve it, but there you go.
Anyone want to guess how long it will take, and home many reports??