The organisation responsible for keeping the city free of unsightly graffiti says it removed a staggering 1814 tags from around east Auckland in 2023-2024.
That’s an average of almost five each day and represents an increase of 40 per cent from the previous year.
Beautification Trust chief executive Daniel Barthow and community programmes manager Sterling Ruwhiu recently updated the Howick Local Board on their work over the past year.
Barthow said in other areas he’s seen a decrease in tagging, so the growth in east Auckland “bucks the trend”.
“That comes down to one or two key taggers, who some of you know about.
“They were found and they were prosecuted, which is quite uncommon nowadays.
“We do expect to see now a real levelling off and decrease in tagging in the Howick Local Board area.”
Barthow says the trust provides a “rapid-removal service” for graffiti.
“So 100 per cent of tags that are reported are removed within 24 hours through Auckland Council.
“Anything that’s offensive, 97 per cent of the time that’s removed within two hours.
“So that’s really about that rate of removal and our proactive approach to tag removal.”
The Times recently reported on the police’s efforts to identify two people responsible for tagging on various locations around Howick.
Howick Police community services supervisor, sergeant Brett Meale, said there had been a spike in graffiti vandalism in Howick and Botany involving an offender using spray paint, permanent marker or white-out pen to “tag” buildings, structures and signs.
The first such incident saw the culprit graffiti on numerous locations in Picton Street and Cook Street, Howick.
“The main street here and even the Cook Street art gallery were tagged extensively,” Meale said at the time.
“Countdown was tagged on as were numerous buildings, rubbish bins and signs. All tagged in one night.”
Meale spotted more tagging on a business at the corner of Picton Street and Selwyn Road in Howick village the following month.
Following the tagging spree, police made a public appeal for information on the potential identity of the offender.
Police then executed a search warrant and as a result a 25-year-old man from Howick was charged.
In August he was convicted in the Manukau District Court of 10 charges of wilful damage in relation to the graffiti in Howick.
He was sentenced to serve one month of home detention and fined $1373.
Meale previously said he appreciates the work of the Beautification Trust.
“With the tagging in Picton Street we contacted them and within a couple of hours they were here and painted all the stuff out. It was amazing and they provide a great service.”
- Report graffiti vandalism to the Beautification Trust online at www.beautification.org.nz or phone 0800 363 824.
