'Vancouver Beautification Day' tackles graffiti across the city

Volunteers and community groups took to the streets of Vancouver Saturday for the city’s first “Beautification Day” in an effort to clean up vandalism in hard-hit areas.

Participants were deployed the neighbourhoods of Strathcona, Mount Pleasant and the Downtown Eastside, to name a few, to paint over graffiti tags on public and private property.

According to city councillor Mike Klassen, hundreds of volunteers signed up to help out. Business improvement associations in Mount Pleasant, Strathcona, Collingwood and East Village, as well as community policing centres from South Vancouver and Collingwood also took part.

Graffiti vandalism “got really bad” over the pandemic, Klassen told CTV News at the clean-up in Strathcona. He said tagging vandalism increases crime rates and negatively affects people’s quality of life.

“Seniors especially feel a bit threatened when they see a lot of tagging, they don’t feel welcome in their community,” he said.

He said tackling graffiti is a way to address community safety, and hopes ‘Vancouver Beautification Day’ will be come an annual event.

“This will be a wonderful opportunity for all Vancouverites to come together and make a tangible difference in our city,’ Mayor Ken Sim said in a news release that officially proclaimed June 17 as ‘Vancouver Beautification Day.’

“By working collaboratively, we can showcase the true spirit of community and create a more vibrant and inviting place for everyone,” he continued.