There is a time and place for street art, however the eyesore of graffiti vandalism and tagging is starting to become more of a fixture in the Port Macquarie-Hastings region.
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Council is responding to the increased amount of graffiti that is appearing overnight and is reminding residents that vandalism is a crime.
Port Macquarie-Hastings Council's acting group manager of community Hayley Owen said council is aware of the increased amount of graffiti and is working to remove it.
"We have noticed the increase in graffiti around the local government area. We are lucky to have a limited number of volunteers that go out weekly to clean council assets, as well as our crews who prioritise removing offensive or obscene pieces in the community," she said.
Graffiti is also appearing on private property, which falls under the responsibility of the property owner to remove.
"We do have cleaning kits available for business owners and residents to pick up from our council building to assist," Ms Owen said.
The community is also being reminded that graffiti is vandalism and it is an offence.
"If you do see graffiti in a public space, please report it so we can remove it, and work with the local police to investigate," Ms Owen said.
Detective Chief Inspector Darren Jameson said graffiti is classified as malicious damage and can also carry an unlawful entry charge if the perpetrator commits the offence on private property.
"Being charged with a graffiti offence does impact a persons' criminal record and can make it difficult for the person when applying for a visa or when applying for a job," he said.
"Leaving graffiti in public places also results in a cost for businesses to remove it."
Council's website includes further information regarding the increased amount of graffiti across the Port Macquarie-Hastings.
"We want to continue providing resources to manage the increase that we're seeing at the moment. If you're interested in volunteering, or need to pick up a cleaning kit, you can find more information on council's website," Ms Owen said.
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