February 3, 2005


Almaden’s Rob Boyles takes pride in eradicating graffiti and litter

San Jose’s Anti-Graffiti and Litter Program lauded worldwide

By Jeanne Carbone Lewis
Staff Writer

We’ve all seen it. Words, symbols and shapes drawn or scratched on buildings, overpasses and poles. It’s done without permission and it’s against the law.

Rob Boyles demonstrates the removal of graffiti using solvent and a scrub sponge, which eradicates the vandalism in seconds. Vandals deface the backs of poles so that passersby will not notice. “He has a commitment and a passion for what he’s doing and he’s made a big difference,” said Rick Stanton, community services supervisor for the city of San Jose’s Anti-Graffiti and Litter Program. Photo by Jeanne Carbone Lewis

Called “tags,” Almaden resident Rob Boyles is committed to ending the urban blight in San Jose. Not only that, he’d like to erase the litter thrown on city streets, lots and parks.

Boyles is the volunteer coordinator of the Anti-Graffiti and Litter Program for the city of San Jose. He is the leader of a dedicated team working to beautify San Jose by preventing and removing graffiti and litter through community involvement, eradication and enforcement.

“Rob was instrumental in recruiting volunteers,” said Rick Stanton, community services supervisor for the city of San Jose’s Anti-Graffiti and Litter Program. “When Rob began, there were only 124 volunteers. Now we have 2,600. He has a commitment and a passion for what he’s doing and he’s made a big difference.”

With the effort of the city and committed volunteers, the Anti-Graffiti and Litter Program is being honored by the Keep California Beautiful on Feb. 9. Keep America Beautiful has also honored them in the past.

The numbers tell it all. Since the program began in 1999, graffiti in San Jose has been reduced an astonishing 95 percent. A street-by-street survey covering San Jose’s 177 square miles had total tags of 71,541 in 1999. Last year the count was 3,913 with only 6.5 percent gang-related. Response time for hotline calls [to remove the graffiti] was 99 percent within 48 hours, and for gang graffiti 98 percent within 24 hours.

San Jose’s program has garnered national and international attention from staff in Los Angeles, Modesto, Maryland, Hawaii, Australia, New Zealand and Canada who call and visit San Jose in hopes of learning the secrets to the groups success. On the day of our interview, Boyles received a call from Milwaukee, Wis. inquiring about how to abate unsightly monikers left by vandals which has cost Milwaukee thousands of dollars.

Boyles’ fight
Boyles’ involvement with fighting graffiti began innocently enough. Moving to Almaden in 1992 after marrying his wife Marcy and entering semi-retirement, they would visit Golden Oak Park [now Jeffrey Fontana Park] and remove litter on their walks. Their golden retriever, Teddy, would point to the litter to make sure they hadn’t missed any and became known as the “litter dog” as they strolled, plastic bags in hand and removed the “graffiti on the ground.”

One day while picking up litter in the park, the couple found tagging on the children’s play lot. They brought supplies and cleaned up the graffiti. That began a three-week battle waged against the vandals, with the couple arriving at sunrise and removing the eyesore from the night before with their own supplies. After three weeks, the taggers gave up, but the couple continued to monitor the park. That’s when Boyles heard about the Adopt-A-Block [part of the Anti-Graffiti Program] where the city gives volunteers supplies to clean up graffiti. Boyles joined and began speaking to groups all over the city about volunteering. Boyles’ wife said he “could sell igloos to Eskimos.”

“I feel very strongly that the quality of life is something that we all work very hard for,” the burly Boyles explained.

“Part of that quality of life is the esthetics of our surroundings. We live in a beautiful area and a wonderful city. The Almaden Valley is only as good as we make it. If you give [the taggers] permission, they’ll do it more and more. It really rubbed me the wrong way that people thought they could put tags all over the city and ruin that quality of life.”

Marcy and Rob Boyles with Teddy and Abbie at Jeffrey Fontana Park where their battle against graffiti vandals began. Photo by Jeanne Carbone Lewis

The self-depreciating, amiable Boyles is quick to mention that it is a team effort with the help of the city employees, San Jose Police Department Graffiti Enforcement Team and volunteers working together. And it starts at the top. Mayor Ron Gonzales has been a strong proponent of a clean city since he first took office.

“We wiped out graffiti throughout San Jose with the help from thousands of neighborhood volunteers organized by Rob in our Anti-Graffiti Program,” said Gonzales. “Both the involvement of the people and the results they have achieved through the ongoing leadership of Rob has made San Jose the model of success for cities everywhere trying to beat back graffiti. He and the rest of the staff have been the big reason our community volunteers are highly motivated and well equipped to make our city a place of pride for all our residents.”


Community involvement
The Anti-Graffiti Program makes presentations and provides training to community, business, school, service organizations and clubs. Boyles speaks with passion at the presentations about having a clean city and gaining volunteers along the way. At festivals like Tapestry in Talent, Almaden Art and Wine Festival and neighborhood events, a booth is set up and volunteers are signed up and provided with solvent and supplies. Whether a resident is willing to monitor and clean a whole block or only one small area, Boyles is always ecstatic to see people get involved.

Eradication
The eradication team is responsible for removing graffiti from both public and private property that is reported via the 24-hour Anti-Graffiti Hotline [408-277-2758]. The city of San Jose staff and the Conservation Corps are committed to removing graffiti within 48 hours and responding to gang graffiti within 24 hours.

Enforcement
An important aspect is the enforcement team. In charge of this component are Sgt. Rich Mongarro and officers Dave Bonillas and Paul Fontaine. They investigate graffiti cases, question suspects and build strong cases for the district attorney’s office. The officers also give talks at schools describing to students how graffiti is detrimental to society and what happens to taggers when they are caught.

First-time offenders are sentenced to a minimum of 66 hours, a second offence doubles to 132 hours and may include loss or suspension of a driver’s license for up to a year, an assignment to keeping tagged areas clean, house arrest with an ankle monitor (which the offenders pay for), juvenile hall/jail/prison time and fines and restitution to the victim. A third conviction is an automatic felony count if a vandal has spent at least one day in jail as a result of the previous charges.

“Every bit that the public can volunteer helps make a difference,” Sgt. Mongarro said. “We would never have enough staff to do it all. Taggers think they’re achieving fame but all they’re doing is breaking the law.”

Anti-Litter Program
Boyles is equally excited about the 3-year-old Anti-Litter Program. The city has initiated litter educational cartoons, instilling a vision of a clean, refuse-free city that run on several cable television channels so that children are aware of the problem and will hold their parents accountable. One hundred fifty [15 for each council district] Adopt-a-Spot sites are the focus of volunteers who go out once a month to keep an area free of the “graffiti on the ground.” So far 62 streets, lots and areas are adopted many more volunteers are needed.

“We make it as easy as possible for volunteers,” Boyles remarked. “If they can go once a month, fine. If they just want to keep the pole in front of their house free from graffiti, that’s great, too. My goal is to have volunteers cleaning areas every week.”

“The Almaden Valley is only as good as we make it,” Boyles continued. “If you don’t get rid of the graffiti right away you’re giving permission to the taggers. Report it if you can’t abate it. Be part of the solution, not part of the problem.”

When Boyles isn’t promoting a cleaner city, he and Marcy enjoy foreign and domestic travel. They have four children between them and one grandchild, Bryce. And they continue to pick up litter and keep an eye out for taggers at Jeffrey Fontana Park on their daily walks…along with Teddy.

For more information on volunteering or to have Rob Boyles speak to your group call the Anti-Graffiti and Litter Program at (408) 277-3208. To report graffiti on both public and private property call the Anti-Graffiti Hotline at (408)277-2758. To report graffiti vandals call (408) 947-STOP.

The Great America Pick-Up event is scheduled for April 23 where all residents can volunteer to pick up letter. Look for future announcements on locations for supplies.