Mayor Lou Maieron wants to know if the town is ready to take a stand on vandalism in the community.
On Feb. 21, he said the issue cropped up in the council and staff working meeting for Centre 2000 and the report from town manager Lisa Hass was to be discussed that night.
Minutes from the meeting noted cameras at Centre 2000 are not doing the job. Reports indicate having cameras is not eliminating vandalism, plus there are delays in having the police lay charges.
The report said first time offenders usually are only required to do community service, and discussion arose if bills could be sent to those convicted to recover costs.
In her report Hass said she had received an email from Wellington County OPP Inspector Scott Smith regarding a graffiti wall at a proposed skateboard park.
She said Smith had done additional research on the idea, and found municipalities that have tried this idea have found the blank space provides only a place for the drawing craft to be practiced before moving on to other areas of the municipality. The experience with the idea has been negative.
Maieron asked, “Are we prepared to look into doing something about vandalism … address it or reduce it.”
He was uncertain of the best means of doing it. “I think we have vandalism problems in the town, but there are also the costs to municipal infrastructure because of it.”
He said Erin is now recording costs incurred because of that vandalism.
“I think we have the responsibility to do something.”
Councillor Deb Callaghan said the issue will be brought to Erin’s community oriented policing committee in March, and the response could come following the committee discussion. Councillor Barb Tocher said it was interesting what Inspector Smith wrote about the idea of the graffiti wall. “It just gave them one more wall to paint.”
Hass, too, found that comment surprising.
“We’re not going to give them another wall to paint,” Tocher said.
