Graffiti topped the list of complaints of vandalism to the city of Ottawa in December last year.

All 33 complaints of vandalism received in December 2013 were related to graffiti and all 45 received in 2014 were also graffiti related.

“Most of the reports on graffiti last year were gang tagging,” said Mathieu Fleury, Councillor for Rideau Vanier. “The problem of graffiti is not widespread in the residential areas.” He said most of these vandalisms take place at parking lots and other places where there are not many people and this makes it difficult for the culprits to be brought to book.

Fleury’s ward topped the list of complaints. He said the Rideau Vanier Ward topped the list because it is the most densely populated area in Ottawa and the surge in gang activities might have also been responsible for the increase.

He said it it was also difficult to control such acts of vandalism because most of the perpetrators commit such acts at a time nobody is watching them. “I have no control over it and we have to depend on complaints to get rid of such unauthorized graffiti especially offensive ones,” he said.

The City of Ottawa passed the graffiti management law in 2008. Under the law, all city property are to remain graffiti free and culprits face a fine of up to $ 610. “This is to prevent people from drawing on any free space in the city,” said Catherine William the new project coordinator for the Graffiti Management program. Under the program, any graffiti reported to the city will be removed by the city and the culprit pays for the removal in addition to the fine.

The city’s “Paint up” project which seeks to replace vandalism through graffiti with mural paintings is still running. “Under the paint up project, individuals or groups could come to the city and engage in mural paintings which will be supervised by the city,” William said. “Because there is a financial package involved, it is hoped more youth will get involved in this and avoid graffiti vandalism.” William said even though Ottawa’s problem with graffiti is not as bad as other major cities like Toronto and Montreal, programs such as the paint up will help reduce graffiti vandalism. She said the city will be hosting annual Anti Graffiti Symposium dubbed TAGS 2015 conference later this year where other cities in the country will learn from each other how to tackle the issue of graffiti vandalism.

Under the graffiti management law, any resident whose property has been vandalized has to pay for the removal of the graffiti. Even though William admits, this could make innocent citizens pay for the crime of others, “unfortunately, it is the law,” she said. “The city can discuss how best the issue can be handled with the owner,” she added. She said even though the city can do little about that, discussing the issue can bring out some solutions. “That is why we urge everybody to call 3-1-1 when they notice something,” she said.

Fleury also admits this aspect of the law could be harsh but said the law and other programs like paint up are ways graffiti vandalism can be resolved. “We are open as a city to all forms of discussions but we must also work within the confines of the law,” he said.

The Vanier Community Church has been vandalized with graffiti three times within the last two years. Officials of the church had not responded to requests for interview at the time of filing this report