How to deal with graffiti
Sydney is remarkably gorgeous – and as a vibrant and lively city, graffiti artists heavily populate the streets.
Graffiti can be beautiful when done by an approved professional. Unfortunately, some are offensive and can be unsightly on a building.
It’s common for graffiti artists to vandalise an area to claim, “fame value”. The more visible and dangerous the painted work is, the more “fame value” the graffitist acquires.
Without the consent of the property owner, graffiti is considered vandalism and is defacing the property, which is illegal. Most councils have banned random graffiti, yet it can still be seen in many places that would be better off without it.
Keep reading to learn more about graffiti and its impact on strata companies in Sydney.
How graffiti impacts strata management in Sydney
When it comes to problems in general, prevention is better than scouring for a solution. Hence, when graffiti is a problem, preventing vandalism is the ideal solution.
Your building is the face of your company; it’s the first thing people see upon entering your premises, and the only thing non-occupants see from the exterior. You wouldn’t want the only encounter potential tenants or clients have with your company to be a defaced exterior.
Vandalism lowers the property value due to the lack of curb appeal. Some graffiti tags can be offensive and leave people feeling emotionally distressed, especially near or on their homes.
Keeping a building clean and safe from graffiti is one of the challenges in strata management in Sydney.
If graffiti is consistently undealt with some tenants may even vacate because of the negative implications undealt with graffiti has.
The longer graffiti is on display or around your property, the greater the reward for the graffitist which means that location will probably be targeted again. Undealt with graffiti promotes new graffiti.
This is the reason why you’ll want to remove any graffiti markings as soon as possible. It is vital to keep your building well-maintained and clean to encourage people to look after and respect your property instead of misusing it.
Identifying target areas isn’t that difficult. Look out for large blank smooth walls, elevated positions that are highly visible and areas obscured from view.
Easy solutions to your graffiti problem
It is crucial to remove any graffiti markings as soon as possible. Hiring a professional cleaning service to pressure wash the area will do the trick. The longer graffiti stays up, the more enticed and tempted other graffitists can be.
Removing graffiti is only visually fixing the problem, addressing the root of the issue may take extra steps to prevent further defacing and vandalism. Painting your building’s walls with darker colours instead of a lighter one can prevent graffitists from marking up your property.
Lighter colours provide a fresh canvas for the vandals, which is why it is important to remove every potential space they can target.
Avoiding soft texture walls and having rough, uneven textures will be harder to draw and paint on. You can also buy and cover your walls with an anti-graffiti coating to prevent these markings being made.
Another practical solution to your graffiti problem is to plant bushes and trees near walls. This makes accessibility difficult, especially if the bushes have thorns or spikes.
Finally, store away unused equipment such as rubbish bins. These items are sometimes used as climbing structures to paint or draw in typically hard-to-reach areas.
Put up zero-graffiti tolerance signs to warn the vandals that you will call the authorities if they vandalise your property. Putting up sufficient lighting and cameras will also fend off the graffiti culprits, as it will be easier to be noticed and caught.
Considering approved graffiti
In a city like Sydney, graffiti can be a unique characteristic of the city, even attracting tourists.
Often if the surrounding area has been graffitied, it’s better to call in a professional to paint on your walls. It can create an opportunity for your property to blend into the environment and form part of the unique culture in that particular area.
Painting over a blank space may prevent a vandal from defacing that area. When done by a professional, you can always request relevant artwork that will improve the curb appeal of your building.
If your property can pull off the “graffiti-look”, it is worth looking into hiring a professional graffiti artist to come and do your walls.
Looking to effectively deal with graffiti? A strata manager can function as a reliable point of contact for repairs relating to graffiti and vandalism on common property. To talk about professional strata management services, call Strata & Co. today on 1300 033 947 to find out more about strata management in Sydney.
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