Graffiti reports on the rise in Colorado Springs; How the city is fighting the paint-based vandalism

COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. (KRDO) - Graffiti reports in Colorado Springs have already surpassed last year's total, and the Colorado Springs Graffiti Team says they expect another thousand more reports before the year's end.

"As you're looking to our slopes to the west of us, [the] last thing you want to see is graffiti tags and that type of blight," Tom Wasinger is the code enforcement manager in Colorado Springs. He oversees the graffiti team.

The team employs a host of tactics to remove the 'tags' from around the city: spray paint, paint rollers, sandblasters, and even an environmentally safe cleaner.

In 2023, the city conducted 14,838 graffiti cleanups. This year they've already passed that number by 100, and compared to this time last year they've done almost 900 more cleanups.

But Wasinger, couldn't necessarily say this is because there's been more graffiti, simply more reported.

Users of the GoCOS app can tell the city where graffiti is located throughout the city and even attach a picture of the tag.

"We're seeing an uptick in our graffiti complaints," Wasinger said.

Generally speaking, Wasinger says most of these tags are not gang-related. This year gang-related graffiti tags make up a measly 5% of all the city's cleanups.

Despite common thought, it is not a crime exclusive to young people.

However, Wasinger says this type of vandalism can snowball into serious charges. "I wish it were only a couple of tags, typically it turns into hundreds of tags, Wasinger said, "There could be felony charges for defacing property."

You can help fight the graffiti through the Colorado Springs app, GoCOS.