Mural regulations and graffiti removal discussed Monday by Colorado Springs City Council

COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. (KRDO) -- City crews have cleaned up nearly as much graffiti through May of this year, than they did all of last year, but officials said that it's not because of an increase in the colorful vandalism.

Officials told the City Council during a work session on Monday that increasing the number of crews devoted to graffiti removal from one to two -- a move that happened last year -- along with more public feedback, is allowing more cleanup to happen at a faster rate.

According to officials, crews cleaned up 1,977 locations last year and had already removed graffiti from 1,581 locations through May of this year.

In a related matter, the Council and city staff discussed a growing controversy regarding murals painted on private property -- a practice that, in most cases, city officials have little control over.

Councilman Dave Donelson said that he has heard from many citizens who live in or travel through the Knob Hill area east of downtown, who believe the murals are eyesores that should have more city oversight.

'They feel like they're being demoralized and beaten down by having to look at this stuff every single day when they go by it," he explained. "If we can't fix that, we can at least prevent it in the future."

Supporters of the artwork, however said that the murals brighten up older commercial buildings that have bare walls and serve as a source of community pride.

"The examples you're showing aren't representative of most of the murals," said Molly McClure, a well-known local mural artist. "I've put a lot of energy into trying to create beauty. So, if we're only highlighting these negative things, I don't see room for the bigger picture."

The Council asked city staff to study other methods by which city officials can have a greater say in where and how murals can be painted.

"Maybe develop some guidelines or best practices for murals -- not necessarily regulating the content or making content regulation a requirement of city code," said city planning director Peter Wysocki.

City officials said that they could have more involvement through the city's recently-updated development code -- which wouldn't affect preexisting murals but would allow the city to approve murals that are part of, or incentives for, future development.