Agenda Item No: 1.c
PLACENTIA CITY COUNCIL AGENDA REPORT
Meeting Date: February 18, 2025
Submitted by: Joe Lambert
From: Development Services
Subject:
Second Reading and Adoption of Ordinance No. O-2025-01, an Ordinance of the City Council of the City of Placentia, California Amending Chapter 10.56 “Graffiti” of Title 10 “Peace, Morals and Safety” of the Placentia Municipal Code Relating to the Prevention, Enforcement, and Abatement of Graffiti, and Recovering Costs Related Thereto Financial Impact:
Fiscal Impact: No immediate impact. Potential for increased revenue.
Summary:
This Ordinance would amend Placentia Municipal Code (PMC) Chapter 10.56 (“Graffiti”) to add additional language to Section 10.56.010 “Intent and purpose”, to add definitions of “Minor” and “Responsible Party” to Section 10.56.020, to add requirements to Section
10.56.060 to store graffiti (implements) only in areas where general public can only access with employee assistance; to add enforcement tools for recovering the City’s cost of abating graffiti Section 10.56.070; to add language encouraging and/or requiring the use of graffiti- resistant coatings, faux or live landscaping or other techniques approved by the Development Services Director or designee to Standard Conditions of Approval for new developments.
Based on City Council direction during the February 4, 2025 Public Hearing, Staff amended Sections 10.56.070(c)(3)(A) and10.56.070(c)(3)(E) to include language to allow other security measures and/or deterrents to reduce graffiti.
Recommendation:
Recommended Action: It is recommended that the City Council take the following action:
1. Waive full reading, by title only, and adopt Ordinance No. O-2025-01, an Ordinance of the City Council of the City of Placentia, California amending Sections 10.56.010,
10.56.020, 10.56.060, and 10.56.070 (Chapter 10.56 “Graffiti” of Title 10 “Peace, Morals and Safety”) relating to the prevention, enforcement, and abatement of graffiti, and recovering costs related thereto
Strategic Plan Statement:
This item is consistent with the City Council approved 5-Year Strategic Goal No. 4, to Increase Community Engagement, specifically Objective No.4.7 Police, which is to Conduct Community Oriented Policing and Proactive Policing (i.e. Neighborhood Watch, Community Watch, etc.) This agenda item utilizes proactive policies for Policing and Code Enforcement. 1 Discussion:
The City desires to provide notice to all persons that the City intends to strictly enforce local and state laws pertaining to the vandalism of property by graffiti. This includes, but is not limited to, California Penal Code Sections 594, 594.1, 640.5 and 640.6, California Vehicle Code Section 13202.6, and Chapter 10.56 of the Municipal Code.
The additional language in the “Intent and Purpose” section explains why proactive enforcement is important. Graffiti has been found to be associated with criminal activity and delinquency. It is also a means of identification and intimidation utilized by gangs and its presence may further illegal gang-related activities.
The acts of graffiti vandalism are most often committed by persons under the age of 18, using aerosol spray paint and other implements that are often stolen from retail stores. To make these graffiti implements less accessible to minors and to provide retail stores greater protection from theft of these items, the City will require additional steps to prevent easy theft of implements most commonly used in committing graffiti related crimes.
In an effort to make theft of these graffiti implements more difficult, the Ordinance seeks to place them in enclosures behind the counter or in locked cabinets rather than open display shelving. To aid in the enforcement against graffiti vandalism by minors, the Ordinance holds jointly responsible the parents or guardians of the minors who commit these crimes, with escalating consequences for repeat offenses within certain time frames. The Ordinance provides for possible treble damages, civil litigation, and/or criminal prosecution as enforcement options.
Background:
The presence of graffiti creates fear within the community and blight upon the landscape and detracts from a sense of community enjoyed by the residents of the City of Placentia. The detrimental effects of graffiti go beyond the cost of clean-up and removal and there is currently no mechanism within the ordinance to hold parents or legal guardians accountable for violations committed by persons under 18 years of age, nor can the City recover the costs of graffiti removal after such violations committed by minors.
While the City desires to provide mechanisms for the easy removal of graffiti in the future for property identified to be prone to repeated graffiti defacement, the City also desires to provide for the ability to enforce our regulations against these minor persons committing acts of graffiti within the City and to recover the costs incurred by the City in the abatement thereof.
Additionally, the City would require future developments to incorporate a mechanism to deter graffiti by using graffiti-resistant coatings, faux landscaping affixed to the vertical surface, live landscaping or other techniques approved by the Development Services Director or designee.
Based on City Council direction during the February 4, 2025 Public Hearing, Staff amended Sections 10.56.070(c)(3)(A) and10.56.070(c)(3)(E) to include language to allow other security measures and/or deterrents to reduce graffiti.
Fiscal Impact Summary:
Fiscal Impact: No immediate impact. Potential for increased revenue.
Attachments
Placentia_Ordinance_Graffiti_Amend_Ch_10_56_FINAL CLEAN.docx 2 3
Ordinance O-2025-01
ORDINANCE NO. O-2025-01
AN ORDINANCE OF THE CITY COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF
PLACENTIA, CALIFORNIA AMENDING SECTIONS
10.56.010, 10.56.020, 10.56.060, and 10.56.070 (CHAPTER
10.56 “GRAFFITI” OF TITLE 10 “PEACE, MORALS AND
SAFETY”)RELATING TO THE PREVENTION,
ENFORCEMENT, AND ABATEMENT OF GRAFFITI, AND
RECOVERING COSTS RELATED THERETO.
City Attorney Summary
This Ordinance would amend Chapter 10.56 (“Graffiti”) to add additional language to Section 10.56.010 “Intent and purpose”, to add definitions of “Minor” and “Responsible Party” to Section 10.56.020, to add requirements to Section 10.56.060 to store graffiti implements only in areas where the general public can only access with employee assistance; to add enforcement tools for recovering the City’s cost of abating graffiti to Section
10.56.070.
A.Recitals
(i)Chapter 10.56 “Graffiti” was added to the Placentia Municipal Code in 1993 and amended from time to time thereafter.
(ii)Acts of graffiti are destructive of the rights and values of private property owners as well as of the entire community.
(iii) The presence of graffiti creates fear within the community and blights upon the landscape and detracts from a sense of community enjoyed by the residents of the City of Placentia (“City”).
(iv) The detrimental effects of graffiti go beyond the cost of clean-up or removal. (v) There currently is no mechanism within the ordinance to hold accountable the parents or legal guardians for violations committed by persons under 18 years of age or recover the costs of graffiti removal after such violation by minors. (vi)The City desires to provide for the ability to enforce the ordinance against these minor persons committing acts of graffiti within the City and to recover costs incurred by the city in the abatement thereof.
(vii) The City desires to provide mechanisms for the easy removal of graffiti in the future for property identified to be prone to repeated graffiti defacement. 4 Ordinance O-2025-01
B.Ordinance
NOW, THEREFORE, the City Council of the City of Placentia does hereby find, determine, and ordain as follows:
SECTION 1. Section 10.56.010 of Chapter 10.56 (Graffiti) of Title 10 (Peace, Morals and Safety) is hereby amended as follows:
§ 10.56.010. Intent and purpose.
It is the intent and purpose of the city council, of the city through the adoption of this chapter, to provide additional enforcement tools beyond those set forth in Chapter 8.06 of the Placentia Municipal Code to protect public and private property from the acts of vandalism and defacement especially, but not limited to graffiti on privately and publicly owned walls, which are inimical and destructive of the rights and values of private property owners as well as the total community.
It is further the intent of the city council, through the adoption of this chapter, to give notice to all who disregard the property rights of others that the city will strictly enforce all laws prohibiting graffiti, including but not limited to California Penal Code Sections 594, 594.1, 640.5 and 640.6, California Vehicle Code Section 13202.6, and the provisions of this chapter.
Graffiti has been found to be associated with criminal activity and delinquency. It is also a means of identification and intimidation utilized by gangs and its presence may further gang-related activities.
The power of graffiti to create fear within the community and blight upon the landscape, devaluing property and detracting from the sense of community enjoyed by the residents of Placentia, goes beyond the cost of clean-up or removal and is such that the city council finds it necessary to enact regulations for the display, sale and possession of graffiti implements and to provide for a reward, under certain circumstances, for information leading to the arrest and conviction of any person for violation of this chapter.
Not only is graffiti a criminal act of vandalism, but it is also a social crime upon the quality of life and freedom from intimidation that residents desire in their neighborhoods.
Acts of graffiti are most often committed by persons under the age of 18 years using aerosol containers of spray paint or felt-tip markers, or both. These implements of graffiti are frequently stolen from retail stores by minors, and, as such, retail stores that display or sell these implements should be required to take reasonable steps to prevent their theft.
California Government Code Section 53069.3 authorizes the City, under certain circumstances, to provide for the removal of graffiti and other inscribed materials from private as well as public property. Unless the City causes graffiti to be removed from 5 Ordinance O-2025-01
public and private property, it tends to remain. Other properties then become the target of graffiti with the result that the entire neighborhood is affected and becomes a less desirable place in which to be.
SECTION 2. Section 10.56.020 of Chapter 10.56 (Graffiti) of Title 10 (Peace, Morals and Safety) is hereby amended to add the following:
"Minor" means any person under 18 years of age.
"Responsible party" means any person who owns, possesses, occupies, or otherwise has responsibility for the repair or maintenance of personal or real property on which there exists graffiti. Responsible party shall also include any minor (or parent or guardian of a minor) or other person who causes or permits the application of graffiti or other inscribed material. Responsible party shall also include the City within the scope and meaning of Subsection (k)(5) of California Penal Code Section 1202.4 when the graffiti occurs on the City's property or when the graffiti occurs on public or private property that is not owned by the City and the City, after notice to the property owner, undertakes to clean up the graffiti on private property
SECTION 3. Section 10.56.060 of Chapter 10.56 (Graffiti) of Title 10 (Peace, Morals and Safety) is hereby amended to read as follows:
§ 10.56.060. Storage or display of aerosol paint containers and marking pens.
It shall be unlawful and a misdemeanor for any person or business engaged in a commercial enterprise to display for sale, trade, loan, or exchange any graffiti implement except in an area from which the public shall be securely precluded from entering without employee assistance. Two such acceptable methods for displaying graffiti implements for sale shall be by containment in (1) a completely enclosed cabinet or other storage device which shall be permanently affixed to a building or structure, and which shall, at all times except during access by authorized representatives, remain securely locked; or (2) in an enclosed area behind a sales or service counter from which the public is precluded from entry.
Nothing herein shall relieve such person or business entity from, at all times, complying with the requirements of the California Penal Code Section 594.1(c) by posting signs as described therein
It is the intent of this section to permit, but not to require viewability of aerosol paint containers and felt-tip markers or marking pens, where they are stored or displayed, pending retail sale.
6 Ordinance O-2025-01
SECTION 4.Section 10.56.070 of Chapter 10.56 (Graffiti) of Title 10 (Peace, Morals and Safety) is hereby amended to add the following:
(c) Ease of Removal Provisions.
(3) Conditions on Discretionary Approvals. In imposing conditions upon use permits, variances, building permits to the extent permitted by this code, or other similar land use entitlements or development or design applications, the city may impose graffiti removal requirements or any or all of the following conditions, or other similar or related conditions:
(A) Use of Anti-Graffiti Material. The applicant shall apply an anti- graffiti materialof a type and nature that is acceptable to the city tothosepublicly viewable surfaces to be constructed on the site deemed by the city to be likely to attract graffiti (graffiti attracting surfaces).; To enhance the visual appearance of the structure while discouraging vandalism, any new or modified block wall or building with unobstructed access which abuts the public right-of-way, watershed channel, railway, or public alley must incorporate a mechanism to deter graffiti, which may be one or more of the following methods: graffiti-resistant coatings, faux landscaping affixed to the vertical surface, live landscaping, security measures and/or deterrents, or another technique approved by the Development Services Director or designee. (B) Right of Access to Remove Graffiti. The applicant, as a condition of approval, shall grant, in writing, the right of entry over and access to such parcels, upon 48 hours posted notice, by authorized city employees or agents, for the purpose of removing or painting over graffiti on graffiti attracting surfaces previously designated by the city. Such grant shall be made an express condition of approval and shall be deemed to run with the land and shall include provisions for reimbursement of costs and expenses incurred by the city in such abatement activities.; (C) Supply City With Graffiti-Removal Material. The applicant, and any and all successors in interest, shall, for a specified period of years after approval, provide the city with sufficient matching paint and/or anti- graffiti material on demand for use in the painting over or removal of designated graffiti attracting surfaces.;
(D) Immediate Removal of Graffiti. Persons applying for subdivision or parcel maps shall, as part of any conditions, covenants and restrictions, covenant, which covenant shall run with the land, in a form satisfactory to the city, that the owners of the lots shall immediately remove any publicly viewable graffiti to the city's satisfaction.
7 Ordinance O-2025-01
(E)Repeat Graffiti Locations. For private property structures that a Code Enforcement Officer or Police Officer has identified as being prone to repeated graffiti, the property owner must utilize graffiti-resistance coatings, faux landscaping affixed to the vertical surface, live landscaping, security measures and/or deterrents, or another technique approved by the Development Services Director or their designee in order to enhance the visual appearance of the structure while discouraging
vandalism.
(d) Pursuant to California Civil Code Section 1714.1(b) and Government Code Sections 38772, 38773.2, and 38773.6, the city council hereby makes the expense of abatement of graffiti violations of law committed by minor a personal obligation of both the minor causing the graffiti nuisance and the parent(s) or legal guardian(s) having custody and control of the minor (who shall be jointly and severally liable with the minor), and an assessment against the property of the minor or an assessment against the property of the parent(s) or legal guardian(s) having custody and control of the minor.
Pursuant to California Civil Code Section 1714.1(b) and Government Code Sections 38772, 38773.2, and 38773.6, each parent or legal guardian having custody and control of a minor who places graffiti on any public or privately owned structure, building, or property, including natural and manmade objects within the City, shall be jointly and severally liable with such minor for any and all costs incurred in connection with the removal of any graffiti caused by the minor, including all abatement costs, attorney's fees, court costs, removal costs, costs of repair and/or replacement, and the law enforcement costs incurred by the City in identifying and apprehending the minor.
Pursuant to Government Code Section 38773.7, upon a second or subsequent civil or criminal judgment within a two-year period, the city may find that the minor causing the graffiti nuisance and the parent(s) or legal guardian(s) having custody and control of the minor is responsible for the graffiti and request the court to impose treble damages.
Such liability shall be a personal obligation of each parent or guardian and shall constitute a lien or special assessment on property owned by each parent or guardian pursuant to Section 10.56.110 of this chapter. The City is authorized to initiate legal action to enforce this section, or to recover these costs by any other means provided by law.
The liability of each parent or guardian shall not exceed $37,000, or any future amount set by the California Judicial Council in accordance with California Civil Code Section 1714.1(c).
Disposition of criminal prosecution relating to placement of graffiti does not preclude the City from seeking full cost recovery as provided herein. 8 Ordinance O-2025-01
SECTION 5. Environmental Compliance: Pursuant to the provisions of the California Environmental Quality Act ("CEQA") (California Public Resources Code Sections 21000 et seq.) and State CEQA guidelines (Sections 15000 et seq.) the ordinance is not a "project" and further, that it can be seen with certainty that there is no possibility that the ordinance in question may have a significant effect on the environment, either directly or indirectly, and that therefore no environmental review under the CEQA is required, pursuant to CEQA Guidelines Section 15061 (b)(3).
SECTION 6.Severability: If any section, paragraph, sentence, clause, phrase or portion of this ordinance is held invalid or unconstitutional by any court of competent jurisdiction, such portion shall be deemed severable and such holding shall not affect the validity of the remaining portions hereof. The Mayor and City Council of the City of Placentia hereby declares that it would have adopted this ordinance irrespective of the invalidity of any particular portion thereof and intends that the invalid portions should be severed, and the balance of the ordinance be enforced.
SECTION 7. The Mayor shall sign and the City Clerk shall certify to the passage and adoption of this Ordinance and shall cause the same, or the summary thereof, to be published and posted pursuant to the provisions of law and this Ordinance shall take effect thirty (30) days after passage.
INTRODUCED at a regular meeting of the City Council of the City of Placentia held on the 4th day of February 2025.
PASSED, APPROVED AND ADOPTED this 18th day of February 2025. _________________________________
Kevin Kirwin, Mayor
ATTEST:
_________________________________
Robert S. McKinnell, City Clerk
9 Ordinance O-2025-01
CERTIFICATION
STATE OF CALIFORNIA COUNTY OF ORANGE I, Robert S. McKinnell, City Clerk of the City of Placentia, do hereby certify that the foregoing Ordinance was introduced at a regular meeting of the City Council of the City of Placentia, held on the 4th day of February 2025 and adopted at a regular meeting of the City Council of the City of Placentia, held on the 18th day of February 2025 by the following vote:
AYES: Councilmembers:
NOES: Councilmembers:
ABSENT: Councilmembers:
ABSTAIN: Councilmembers:
ATTEST:
_________________________________
Robert S. McKinnell, City Clerk
APPROVED AS TO FORM:
________________________________
Christian L. Bettenhausen, City Attorney
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