By Scott Brinton
Mark Schmier manages the upkeep of seven commercial properties on Merrick Road in Merrick, Bellmore, Wantagh and Seaford. Last November, a graffiti vandal or vandals hit four of the properties, leaving behind spray-painted marks, known in street parlance as tags.
In all, the repair bill for the vandalism ran $3,000, said Schmier, who offered a $5,000 reward for information leading to the arrest of whoever caused the damage. Schmier noted that the graffiti had to be treated with a light coat of colored stucco rather than simply painted over.
"They were damaging millions of dollars' worth of property..." Schmier said. "It makes me angry because it's senseless. It devalues the property. It's a lot of expense for everybody involved. Unfortunately, it really devalues the community."
At least 10 other incidents of graffiti have occurred in the area since November. Five were reported at local schools. In January, the Nassau County Police Department asked for the public's help in solving the cases, which reportedly happened over the December holidays.
Police said the phrase "Bellmore Punx and Skinz" was scribbled on the schools, and the graffiti also contained racial epithets, so the police department's Bias Crimes Unit was assigned to investigate, said Lt. Richard Hanley of the First Precinct. Among the schools hit were Calhoun High School on State Street in Merrick, Mepham High on Camp Avenue in Bellmore, Wantagh High on Beltagh Avenue in Wantagh, Jonas E. Salk School on Jerusalem Road in Levittown, and McArthur High on North Jerusalem Road in Wantagh.
In recent weeks, four graffiti incidents were noted on Merrick Road in Merrick, just outside Levy-Lakeside Elementary School. All of the graffiti is similar in style. One incident occurred at an office building at Merrick Road and Lindenmere Drive, one at the entrance to Cammans Pond Park, and two on residential fences along Merrick Road, across from Levy-Lakeside. Graffiti was also sprayed on a Bernard Street stop sign in south Merrick. Officer Tom Salsberg of the Seventh Precinct said police had not received a report on the incidents.
A homeowner whose fence was spray-painted, and who declined to be identified, said he wasn't that concerned. He can't see the graffiti from his house, so he didn't particularly care that it was there. He had no plans to paint over his fence, he said.
Town of Hempstead Councilman Gary Hudes, a member of the Nassau County Graffiti Task Force, said that's the wrong approach. He argued that graffiti should be eliminated as soon as it occurs. The tag must be covered so the vandal can no longer see it.
Hudes, a Republican of Levittown, explained that graffiti vandals crave attention. They think of their tags as their signatures, and believe they become famous by plastering their tags in as many places as possible.
If graffiti is cleaned up immediately, there's less of it, Hudes said. "Graffiti begets graffiti," he said. "It's the broken-window theory. If there's a house and someone throws a brick through the window and no one fixes it, the vandal feels it's OK to break another window."
Covering up the graffiti takes away the recognition that graffiti vandals believe they're receiving, Hudes said. "If you take the recognition away," he said, "you say, 'We will not accept this destructive, anti-social behavior.'" And the graffiti vandal will move to another place where the graffiti is tolerated.
Hudes said that graffiti could be easily power-washed off most fences, though some require paint. If the homeowner cannot afford to power-wash or paint the fence, or is elderly, Hudes said, the resident should call his Hempstead Town Hall office. Most likely, the councilman said, he could arrange for Boy Scouts to repair the fence.
Nassau County Legislator David Denenberg, a Democrat of Merrick, said he has spoken with police about the increase in graffiti locally. He was told that young people are spray-painting graffiti to imitate gang behavior. "They're gang wannabes," said Denenberg.
The legislator noted that there aren't real gangs in the Merricks and Bellmores. But he said that even gang wannabes could be dangerous, "because you never know what level they're going to go to."
Comments about this story? SBrinton@liherald.com or (516) 569-4000 ext. 203.
