The Centretown Community Health Centre was once a graffiti hot spot. Taggers continuously left their mark on the pillars just outside the front doors. But, it’s no longer an issue after the centre turned to Ottawa’s Paint It Up program to resolve its problem last August.
“People said it would get graffitied over right away,” says Natasha Beaudin, the centre’s health promoter and Paint It Up co-ordinator. “It has been seven months and they haven’t been tagged. I’m really impressed. The program really does work.”
This is the kind of success story Beacon-Hill-Cyrville ward Coun. Tim Tierney is looking for. Tierney has been publicly expressing his concern about the level of graffiti in his community in the past month.
“We don’t have a wall, I want a wall,” an enthusiastic Tierney says. “I want to see if the Paint it Up program will actually help our community.”
Given that Beacon-Hill has the highest volume of graffiti complaints in the city; Tierney says he is surprised his ward doesn’t have a mural wall yet.
“I do want to see more emphasis on where they are putting these specific canvases for the Paint it Up program,” says Tierney. “If it’s going to be effective we should target the areas that could benefit from it.”
Beacon-Hill, Centretown and Vanier are the three areas that Paint It Up should focus on most, says Tierney. These neighbourhoods have the highest amount of graffiti complaints in the city.
Targeting areas with the highest levels of graffiti crime makes the most sense, says Adam Davidson, an independent artist who advocates for Paint It Up and has designed a mural for the program in the past. Centretown, says Davidson, is a prime location for a mural because it’s downtown and will get a lot of attention: “It’s ideal simply because of the high volume of people.”
But this is what Tierney wants to change. He says he wants to shift the focus off tackling graffiti issues from just the downtown core, to other parts of Ottawa. “Everyone pays taxes,” he says. “We should all have a clean community.”
The Paint It Up program has a dual purpose. It seeks to tackle Ottawa’s tagging issue by encouraging mural painting in graffiti-prone areas. However, it also aims to involve youth in the community while educating them on crime prevention.
The health centre had youth participants from both men’s and women’s shelters and youth service bureaus in Ottawa. Their confidence grew, says Beaudin, and they all gained work experience for their resumes. “I think this helped them find their life path.”
The dual perks of the program is what makes the application process of Paint It Up so competitive. Although, if you’re just looking to simply to paint a mural on a specific building to combat graffiti, says Davidson, the city has lifted bylaws to make that more possible.
“You have to call into the city and get it approved,” says Davidson. “But it is a lot easier now.”
Applications for the Paint It Up program are due April 8. Information can be found on the city’s website.