NEW YORK—Washington Heights graffiti will be power washed away this coming week in an effort to improve the neighborhood’s quality of life, according to State Senator Eric Schneiderman.
Sen. Schneiderman has allocated enough money in the 2009-2010 state budget to clean up 260 graffitied roll-down security gates, building sides, doors and storefronts between 170th and 185th Street on St. Nicholas Avenue.
Julia De Leon has lived in the neighborhood since 1978. She was thrilled to hear about this initiative. “It’s wonderful,” she said.
De Leon said that graffiti is a problem in the neighborhood and she would like to see kids find other ways to express themselves instead of invading other’s privacy. She emphasized that parents should work with the kids.
The cleanup will be undertaken by CitySolve, a company with twelve years of experience in removing graffiti. They are contracted for a year in which they will conduct an initial cleanup, set to take two weeks. Spot-checks will then follow every thirty days to remove any new graffiti.
“We have a lot of people who have lived there their whole lives. There is a lot of pride and they would like to see their neighborhoods cleaned up,” said Bruce Pienkny, president of CitySolve.
Sen. Schneiderman has allocated enough money in the 2009-2010 state budget to clean up 260 graffitied roll-down security gates, building sides, doors and storefronts between 170th and 185th Street on St. Nicholas Avenue.
Julia De Leon has lived in the neighborhood since 1978. She was thrilled to hear about this initiative. “It’s wonderful,” she said.
De Leon said that graffiti is a problem in the neighborhood and she would like to see kids find other ways to express themselves instead of invading other’s privacy. She emphasized that parents should work with the kids.
The cleanup will be undertaken by CitySolve, a company with twelve years of experience in removing graffiti. They are contracted for a year in which they will conduct an initial cleanup, set to take two weeks. Spot-checks will then follow every thirty days to remove any new graffiti.
“We have a lot of people who have lived there their whole lives. There is a lot of pride and they would like to see their neighborhoods cleaned up,” said Bruce Pienkny, president of CitySolve.
Pienkny said that about 95 percent of the graffiti is old so the clean up is not a lost cause.
“It also has a deterrent effect; this neighborhood is fighting back.”
“This is targeting urban terrorism,” said Peter Walsh, the president of the Washington Heights/Inwood Chamber of Commerce. Walsh said that the real victims are the senior citizens and the children in the neighborhood. “We have to fight it. We have to war against it.”
To kick-start the campaign, both Sen. Schneiderman and Assembly Member Adriano Espaillat helped to power wash a graffitied wall.
“We love our neighborhood and our streets, and we will love it more when we have removed unwanted graffiti from our buildings” said Espaillat in a press release.
“This graffiti removal program will begin to tackle the problems associated with graffiti and will empower the citizens to reclaim their streets,” stated Sen. Schneiderman in a press release.
To report graffiti around your local area, call Senator Schneiderman’s office at (212) 544-0173.
“It also has a deterrent effect; this neighborhood is fighting back.”
“This is targeting urban terrorism,” said Peter Walsh, the president of the Washington Heights/Inwood Chamber of Commerce. Walsh said that the real victims are the senior citizens and the children in the neighborhood. “We have to fight it. We have to war against it.”
To kick-start the campaign, both Sen. Schneiderman and Assembly Member Adriano Espaillat helped to power wash a graffitied wall.
“We love our neighborhood and our streets, and we will love it more when we have removed unwanted graffiti from our buildings” said Espaillat in a press release.
“This graffiti removal program will begin to tackle the problems associated with graffiti and will empower the citizens to reclaim their streets,” stated Sen. Schneiderman in a press release.
To report graffiti around your local area, call Senator Schneiderman’s office at (212) 544-0173.
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