"For far too long, graffiti vandalism has destroyed the quality of life in our neighborhoods. Over time, it has lowered property value and created a false impression of lawlessness," Councilman Eric Ulrich said yesterday as he announced a $30,000 program to create "graffiti free" zones in his district, as well as helping homeowners throughout his district (which includes much of Woodhaven) clean up any graffiti vandalism they may have suffered.
The press conference was scheduled for noon at the corner of 101st Avenue and 102nd Street. When we arrived, we saw why they chose this location. We met up with Bruce Pienkny, President of City Solve -- the company that will be performing the clean-up -- and he explained to us how they work. You have to be careful, he explained, especially when dealing with older buildings -- high pressure water alone is not good for those buildings - in fact, it can be harmful. The key, he explained, it to give the chemicals time to work -- and as you can see below, they had already sprayed the graffiti when we arrived.
There are 3 zones that will be cleaned and patrolled:
101st Avenue, between 75th Street and 11th Street
Rockaway Boulevard, between 75th Street and 11th Street
Woodhaven / Crossbay Boulevard (starting at Atlantic Avenue)
While none of these zones are in Woodhaven, the program is being administered by The Greater Woodhaven Development Corporation and all homes throughout Woodhaven may be eligible for free graffiti clean up through this program. If your property has been the victim of graffiti vandalism, call 718-738-1429. If it cannot be cleaned up through this program, there are others that handle graffiti clean-up -- so call now, and get your property cleaned for free! Here is our video report from the press conference:
We got there pretty early and every one else started getting there just before noon. This was the first press conference we were invited to, so we weren't 100% sure where to stand. So we stood up front.
The conference started and Eric Ulrich addressed the crowd -- which, by the time we got started , numbered around 30 or so.
One-by-one, everyone took a turn at addressing the crowd. Maria Thomson of the Greater Woodhaven Development Corporation thanked Councilman Ulrich for his attention to this problem. The CO of the 102nd Precinct, Deputy Inspector McEvoy said that "the men and women of the 102 Precinct are committed to combating our graffiti problem. We're going to continue to fight it, day-in and day-out until it is no longer a problem." (Note: Readers of Project Woodhaven may have noticed that our Captain McEvoy got a promotion to Deputy Inspector. He told us, though, that he will still be addressing the 102nd Precinct Community Council meetings each month.) Congratulations, Deputy Inspector McEvoy! Representing the 106th Precinct, Lt. Abrams (representing Captain Joseph Cortese who was on vacation) said that the 106th Pct is also committed to eradicating this problem. And finally, Bruce Pienkny addressed the crowd and explained the clean-up process. The crowd didn't have too many questions. It was kinda hot out there in the sun and we were waiting for the demonstration. Next, one of the clean up experts came out looking like something from The Andromeda Strain. The chemicals had been working on the graffiti for about 45 minutes to an hour and came off pretty easily. This is really clear in the video above. The whole wall was clean within a few minutes. On the wall below, the section at the left was already painted -- so it will be painted over. The wall that's already bare brick will be treated with chemicals and power washed.
And what's a press conference without a good photo-op? Councilman Ulrich took off his jacket and got a shot at the hose. It actually looked like a lot of fun.
Councilman Ulrich cleaned up a good portion of the wall. It was a good feeling to watch the ugly paint come off, and a nice clean wall left behind.
The next phase was demonstrated as the paint gun came out. It was remarkable watching how quickly -- and neatly -- the wall as painted.
And within about 90 seconds, a wall that was an eyesore was quickly converted into a fresh, clean wall.
Here, Mr. Pienkny, Councilman Ulrich, and Maria Thomson pose in front of the nice clean wall, which only moments before was covered in graffiti. NY1 News was there and interviewed the councilman. Meanwhile, one of the residents had a question about cleaning up graffiti on his nearby property and Mr. Pienkny gave him advice -- but assured him that they would be taking care of it. You can see the difference below -- the picture at left was taken around 12 noon, and the picture at right at around 12:30. What a difference -- and fast! And they've got their work cut out for them, as you can see below. We'll keep an eye on the area and report back -- and remember -- if you have graffiti that needs cleaned, call 718-738-1429. Photos: Josephine Wendell 
If you have any comments, or would like to suggest other projects, drop us a line at info@projectwoodhaven.com or projectwoodhaven@aol.com.
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