Photo courtesy of Kevin Kyle

By Jayson Taylor

City of Brooks asks assistance from residents to help clean up graffiti

Jun 22, 2023 | 5:00 PM

BROOKS, AB – A graffiti problem in the city of Brooks has the city asking residents for assistance. With the upcoming Alberta 55+ Summer Games being hosted in Brooks this summer, the city wants to clean up graffiti throughout the city in preparation for August’s event.

Manager of Community Development Lisa Tiffin says that one prominent individual has been contributing to vandalism throughout the city.

“Unfortunately we’ve had one individual who has spent some time going around town and just tagging a number of different buildings with words and drawings and these words have been done in black spray paint so a lot of these words still remain on buildings around this community at the moment,” Tiffin said on Thursday.

Tiffin says that the vandalism tends to promote conspiracies and leaves messages that she says is confusing.

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This piece of graffiti says something about the Illuminati.

Tiffin says that the graffiti has not been a centralized problem but rather a problem that has been seen throughout the city

“Unfortunately, we’ve seen it kind of all over town. A lot of businesses were tagged, fences, retaining walls, and a number of city facilities as well, so it’s not in one centralized location, it’s kind of peppered throughout the community,” Tiffin added.

The city is offering free supplies to those who need help clearing graffiti off of property. Tiffin says that the city will take as many volunteers as they need in hopes to cleaning up the community and preparing it for this summer’s events.

In a press release on Tuesday, mayor John Petrie said, “By working together, we can swiftly eliminate the remnants of graffiti and demonstrate the unity and determination that defines the spirit of Brooks.”

“Cleaning up the graffiti not only enhances the visual appeal but also sends a strong message that we care about our community,” chief administrative officer Alan Martens also said in a statement on Tuesday.

The Alberta 55+ Summer Games will be taking place in the city from August 17-20 and will see participants from all over the province come to the city.