SAN ANTONIO – San Antonio police are hopeful that a new bumper sticker will help in the city's battle against graffiti.
Police Chief William McManus said Wednesday that the city has already spent $1 million on covering up more than 3.7 million square feet of graffiti at 3,600 different locations.
Dee Pleasant, who has been a member at Conqueror's Assembly in Beacon Hill for 37 years, said the graffiti in her church's neighborhood has been a problem for a long time.
"It's a citywide problem," Pleasant said. "But in this neighborhood where I worship, it is a problem. Because I don't know if you've noticed the church, we've had to paint and it's two different tones. And inside, they've hopped a fence and graffitied the back."
Taggers deface church property, street signs, buildings, almost anything within reach.
"When you're just doing the gang signs, the gang painting, it's not good for any neighborhood because it brings down the value of your home," Pleasant said.
However, efforts are underway to fix the graffiti problem. SAPD is partnering with the city's development services on a new initiative to try to wipe out graffiti.
That initiative comes in the form of a bumper sticker designed to encourage people to call when they see graffiti happening.
"There's so many times that people are driving down the road, they see this going on (and) they have no idea who to call," Officer Bryan Cowan said. "A lot of people's first response is to call 911, which ties up our 911 service. So with the bumper sticker, it gives them a direct line."
"When you see someone in the process or the act of committing graffiti, please call us," McManus said. "It enhances our chances of better catching these folks while they are in the process of tagging our property."
Pleasant said she hopes it will help.
"The police department can only do so much," Pleasant said. "And when they do most of their tagging, it's either late at night or early in the morning, and people are at sleep or at work. So it's a Catch-22 situation."
You can find the bumper stickers on city vehicles. The number to call to report graffiti is 210-207-SAPD.