Portland passes ordinance targeting graffiti removal on private property

PORTLAND, Ore. (KOIN) – Portland City Council unanimously passed an emergency ordinance on Wednesday to expedite graffiti removal on private property.

The ordinance, which was introduced by Commissioner Carmen Rubio, enables the Code Hearings Office to enforce the code on the most “egregious” private properties, which may receive a civil penalty for violating city code.

The ordinance comes after more than 500,000 square feet of graffiti has been removed since the Bureau of Planning and Sustainability took over the Graffiti Abatement Program in October 2022, according to the city.

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“I don’t need to tell Portlanders that the amount of graffiti throughout our city has increased exponentially over the past few years – they can see it with their own eyes,” Rubio said. “I am committed to addressing this problem because I share in the love and pride for Portland with all who live here and visit our wonderful city.”

The commissioner says the ordinance was introduced because some property owners, particularly those from out of state or who own vacant buildings, do not meet city code requirement of removing graffiti from their property within 10 days or after multiple warning letters.

Before the ordinance was passed, the only way for the city to enforce the graffiti code required the city to get an administrative warrant, hire and pay a contractor to paint over the graffiti, then place a lien on the property to recoup the costs with a 25% administrative fee.

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During Wednesday morning’s City Council meeting, BPS said that enforcement process didn’t make sense because it involved a substantial financial investment upfront from the city without knowing when or whether funds will be repaid.

The bureau also argued that the process takes funds away from the graffiti program that would have otherwise gone towards helping small businesses, nonprofits, and residential property owners remove graffiti.

Under the new code, the Graffiti Abatement Program manager will start a complaint with the Code Hearings Office when all other avenues have been exhausted — including sending letters to property owners, or if the property owner is non-responsive or refuses to work the manager to address the graffiti.

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The Code Hearings Office will adjudicate the case and may compel compliance or assess civil penalties if they find the property owner is in violation of the graffiti code.

During this process, property owners will have an opportunity to come into compliance before an assessment of penalties and may appeal any rulings.

“This code provision is really about bringing property owners that are essentially absentee, or not really engaged in the community and not wanting to solve the problem, to bring them to the table to work with the city,” BPS said during the City Council meeting. “Property owners are less likely to ignore the code hearings office, and this will encourage graffiti removal by property owners without impacting the program’s budget.”

Rubio said the change will reduce levels of graffiti on private properties, enhance livability, and improve economic development in the city.

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Since BPS took over the graffiti program in October 2022, the bureau says over 1,000 graffiti service requests have been referred to the Portland Bureau of Transportation, over 500 requests have been referred to Portland Parks & Recreation, and over 200 requests have been referred to the Oregon Department of Transportation.

In that timeline, BPS says they have sent over 800 graffiti abatement letters.

“In the next budget I will prioritize continued funding for this cleanup work at the level the problem demands,” Rubio said. “I encourage Portlanders to keep the reports coming in, especially related to any hate speech, so that we can set priorities and respond accordingly.”

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