MILLCREEK, Utah (ABC 4 News) - If you've been out and about recently you may have noticed the wrong kind of crowd is leaving their mark on some of Utah’s streets and parks. In one spot it just doesn't seem to go away, and people aren't happy about it.
If you've ever been to Tanner Park in Millcreek, you can understand why people are upset about the graffiti. Just below the entrance gate there's a long winding park that's supposed to be a preserved part of nature, but graffiti keeps popping up there. People are tired of it. They want it to stop. So Tuesday ABC 4 went out to get some answers.
Whether you have four legs or just two, you can see how the off-chute of Tanner Park in Millcreek is perfect for pets, hikers, and bicycle riders. But it's also scarred with spray paint.
"It brakes my heart," said Chris Miles, Canyon Rim resident.
"I don't like it," said Jen Sheridan, Cottonwood Heights resident.
"It destroys the beauty of the area," said Don Eckland, Millcreek resident.
ABC 4 heard about the problem from a dog walker alarmed at how quickly the graffiti keeps coming up.
"I'm here everyday and almost every day and there's always new white out and new graffiti," said Miles.
So we at ABC 4 grabbed our gear, and hiked several miles through the park to see what dog walkers were talking about.
"So that's even new right there?" asked Reporter Brian Carlson.
And the graffiti wasn't hard to find. We found it on the freeway retaining wall, all over the bike path, there’s even graffiti on the sign welcoming you to the park.
Once we discovered the spray paint was a real problem, we called Unified Police to see what could be done about it.
"Do you have time to come here and take a look at what we're seeing?" asked Carlson.
We showed Lt. Justin Hoyal several spots where graffiti appeared to be the worst. He said it's something police have been fighting for several years.
"There's graffiti teams up here probably weekly cleaning this graffiti that's up here," said Lt. Justin Hoyal, Unified Police Dept. Spokesperson.
Hoyal said they don't always know who it is, but they believe many times it could be people cutting through the park to spray paint what's called "suicide rock" on the other side of the freeway, a popular activity two women were doing as our cameras were rolling.
Although painting the rock is legal, graffiti is not, and Hoyal warns offenders will be punished.
"We have officers up here looking for people doing this vandalism and if they are caught they'll be cited for it," said Hoyal.
If you notice any graffiti and would like Salt Lake County’s graffiti removal team to care of it, you can call them at 801-743-5906.
