Monday, November 17, 2008
News / Clout City Graffiti program tagged for cuts
Posted by Mick Dumke on Mon, Nov 17, 2008 at 3:15 PM
The city government has long viewed all instances of graffiti as a scourge, a sign of neighborhood deterioration that lowers property values and emboldens more serious criminals—a classic example of the broken windows theory. And aldermen and business and community leaders have generally been big supporters of the Daley administration’s Graffiti Blasters program, which for the last 15 years has dispatched city workers around the city to remove tags from public and private property at no cost to the owner.
But over the last couple months I’ve seen more graffiti in more places around the city than I’ve noticed in years—on the doorways of businesses on the northwest and southwest sides, on garage doors up north, and especially high on the walls of property along the Red Line (which is where I took the pictures above). Some of it was eventually blasted away or painted over, but in many cases not for several weeks.
It’s no secret that the city is facing major budget problems, and since summer some departments have been paring staff and slowing service delivery. The administration’s 2009 budget calls for more of both. But Matt Smith, the spokesman for the Department of Streets and Sanitation, said the Graffiti Blasters program hasn’t been affected.
Through the end of October, Smith said, crews had erased or covered 144,956 patches of graffiti this year, up from 128,845 over the same period in 2007. “Our workers are keeping very busy,” he said. “There have been no slowdowns with graffiti.”
Unless something changes before the city council votes Wednesday on the 2009 budget, the program will have to carry on with less funding next year—$5.6 million, down 28 percent from the $7.8 million allocated for 2008. Most of the savings comes from slicing 14 staff positions.
Still, Smith insists that the program won’t have to reduce its workload because many of the cut jobs were either vacant or held by employees on leave who aren’t returning. “The effect should be negligible,” he said. “We’re not losing someone who’s out there on the street.”
According to the 2009 budget proposal, though, the cuts include seven laborers. And if Smith's overall assessment is right, it raises the question of why we we've been paying millions more for the program than needed. "We're realizing we can get the job done with the people we have [on the job] now," Smith said.
Incidentally, it’s not the only division of Streets and San that’s likely to get less money. The budget for the Bureau of Rodent Control is slated to be reduced 17 percent, and the Bureau of Santitation—i.e., garbage collection—will be sliced 14 percent.
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When can we, the tax paying citizens, expect the ton of garbage at the top of the city government's food chain to be sliced? Firing 5% of the fat cats at the top would result in a budget surplus. A BIG budget surplus. What say you, oh 'beloved' mayor shortshanks? ("let dem eat cake!!!!"
Tell Daley to put a extra tax. This is a dark on white crime.
But the magnificient aldermen did find a way to scratch up an extra $800,000 to save the Jumping Jack program so the little miscreants can have a diversion away from spray paint.
Its about time the residences of the city start taking responsibility for the maintenance their own property. Whats next "Grass Blasters" for people who don't cut the grass.
Lets not deflect from the real problem of Mis Mangement in Chicago.......Mayor Daley and his Administration continue to spend while others are asked to sacrifice. How can you spend $100's of millions of dollars on projects for the rich, than ask the working class to pick up the tab? BAST! In Italian , that means "ENOUGH!"
People in the city are lazy, why should they have to take care of anything? they could care less about anything outside their door. The leaders of this city have made people dependent on them for everything for a hundred years. that makes people rely on the city for everything. We don't need to take care of anything should be our motto.
Chicagoans are a bunch of lazy stupid, no class people,who have the elected leaders they deserve. Their Political/Business Machine can get anyone elected,do to the ignorant people of Chicagoland.
If that punk David Hoffman keeps pushing my people around. I will cut his budget and throw his ass into the North end of lake Michigan. Hoffman should be investigating guys like Frank Coconate instead of my people.
Bernie Baby, Where's the love? I wish the IG'sHoffman would have investigated me, I would't have been terminated! Instead I was investigated by She/ Man Brian Murphy and his band og theifs!!
Wot didd u sey Fwankie???????. Da gwafeetee bwastuews shood bee cutt arowndd u. So youh ahea cann bee duhtee.
more graffiti, potentially more rodents (unless they become a food source),and garbage.
Bush & Blago play twiddlywinks with their.............
I cannot believe a high class guy like Mick doesn't not appreciate art. Tagging is a high class art form. It is a form of expression the poor use to express rage against the machine. Mick get with it, DW.
http://stopjimhoulihan.blogspot.com/2008/11/call-for-real-transparency.html Enjoy this new Blog.
"Yuppie are silly November 18th - 5:04 p.m. I cannot believe a high class guy like Mick doesn't not appreciate art. Tagging is a high class art form. It is a form of expression the poor use to express rage against the machine. Mick get with it, DW." Then the taggers should only be hitting: the properties of politicians the properties of gang-bangers the properties of those having contracts with the city, county and state the properties they, or their blood relatives, own the foreheads of those of like mind After all, according to this poster, it's all about artistically expressing their 'rage against the machine'.
rumor mill. Alderman Patrick O'Connor is next in line for Rahm a Dahm spot! Talk about a bag-man, this guy is so close to the China Town crew, when they shit, he wipes there ass!!! For the those who are new to Chicago, China Town Crew is not a bunch of Asians. It is one of the toughest outfit crews in Organized Crime. It's Boss is Freddie Barbara!
Hello Patrick McDonough. I'll bet you will support Coconate soon!!!!
That Coconut has a lot of nerve downtalking the usual things that would be taboo to talk about in public.
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