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Newcastle graffiti prompts Rotary Club of Newcastle Enterprise clean-up. Image: Rotary Club of Newcastle Enterprise<\/p>\nGraffiti tagging across parts of Newcastle continues to frustrate residents and businesses, with community volunteers spending weekends restoring public spaces.<\/p>\n
In suburbs including Mayfield, Islington and Beresfield, the Rotary Club of Newcastle Enterprise has been tackling the issue through regular clean-up programs.<\/p>\n
Incoming president Julia Brougham said while graffiti in Newcastle was not as severe as in larger cities such as Melbourne, repeated tagging still had an impact on how people felt about their neighbourhoods.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt\u2019s not absolutely terrible, but people notice it,\u201d she explained.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe easy targets are things like the electrical boxes and public infrastructure.\u201d<\/p>\n
Ms Brougham said the group first became involved in graffiti removal more than 13 years ago after partnering with local business groups in Mayfield.<\/p>\n
Armed with paint, rollers and a small trailer, volunteers spent Sunday mornings removing tags from shopfronts, walls and street infrastructure.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe try to get out every two or three weeks,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhen a place looks good, people feel better about it.<\/p>\n
\u201cThere\u2019s a sense of pride and safety.\u201d<\/p>\n
Newcastle graffiti prompts Rotary Club of Newcastle Enterprise clean-up. Image: Rotary Club of Newcastle Enterprise<\/p>\n
The club\u2019s work has since expanded beyond graffiti removal into community mural and beautification projects.<\/p>\n
This includes repainting skate facilities with local school students and restoring public artwork on bridge pylons near Stockton.<\/p>\n
Ms Brougham said spaces featuring murals or community art were often treated with more respect than blank walls.<\/p>\n
\u201cIf something\u2019s already painted and cared for, it tends to get tagged less,\u201d she stated.<\/p>\n
The group has also used anti-graffiti protective coatings on some artworks, allowing volunteers to remove vandalism without damaging the original designs underneath.<\/p>\n
While increased CCTV measures have been discussed in some Newcastle hotspots, Ms Brougham said it was difficult to know whether surveillance alone would reduce graffiti.<\/p>\n
\u201cUnless you have proper baseline data, it\u2019s hard to measure if it actually works,\u201d she admitted.<\/p>\n
Instead, she believes community involvement and positive public art projects can play an important role in discouraging vandalism.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt\u2019s about replacing something people don\u2019t like seeing with something positive,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n
Ms Brougham also challenged common assumptions around who is responsible for graffiti tagging, saying young people were often unfairly blamed.<\/p>\n
\u201cA lot of the larger tagging is actually done by adults,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n
\u201cOur club works closely with young people and they\u2019re not all out there causing problems.\u201d<\/p>\n
She said Newcastle could benefit from more collaboration between councils, community groups and artists to create additional murals and revitalise public areas.<\/p>\n
\u201cThere are opportunities across Newcastle for additional murals and clean-up projects,\u201d Ms Brougham added.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt just takes groups coming together to make it happen.\u201d<\/p>\n
As volunteers continue repainting walls and removing tags across Newcastle, Ms Brougham said the aim remained creating more welcoming spaces for the community.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe do it because it\u2019s the right thing to do,\u201d she summed up.<\/p>\n
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