The following article was taken from an early December, 1996 issue of the Daily Bulletin, a newspaper serving the Pomona community.
Public art or public nuisance?
Police say murals are against the law
By Letisia Marquez
Click here to see the entire mural (file size- 290k may take a while on slower connections)
Pomona—As a young boy, Robert Castillo spray-painted his graffiti illegally. He was a tagger then.
Castillo, 23, said he wants to show off his graffiti legally now. He and his friends have contacted property owners to ask their permission to spray-paint graffiti art.
But that wasn’t enough for Pomona police. The department’s code enforcement unit said graffiti on the Kitron Radio wall, near Park Avenue and Second Street violated city laws and must be erased.
"We don’t want to break the law," said Castillo, a distribution center worker. "We’re trying to do things legally, but it’s not working."
Downtown property owner Gene Hoelzle plans to comply with the demand to remove the graffiti, which includes a large mural, by Dec. 14. But he thinks it’s unfair that he can’t allow graffiti on his property if he wants it.
"This is their escape, and they love it," Hoelzle said of the graffiti artists. "I just told them I don’t want anything X-rated."
It’s not the first time the Police Department has banned graffiti-styled art in the city. In January, at the request of Councilwoman Paula Lantz, painted over graffiti on a Freeman Shoe Store wall.
At the heart of the matter is whether Castillo’s and others’ graffiti constitute art. Its creators say it’s art, but police say it’s vandalism that other people don’t want to see.
And the city doesn’t have regulations on what kind of public art, including murals, should be allowed or banned.
Police Lt. Rick Mackey said the graffiti’s presence violates the city’s zoning ordinance, which calls for "unsightly, hazardous or inappropriate conditions" in the city to be removed. Graffiti falls in the same category as broken windows, overgrown weeds and trash that must be removed once targeted by the city.
An unidentified person also complained about graffiti Mackey said.
"Whether its’ art isn’t a question," said Mackey, who’s in charge of the city’s code enforcement officers. "We have a lot of victims in the city who have been vandalized with graffiti."
Mackey said the graffiti wall has contained vulgar language. He also objected to the phrases "Graffiti Terrorism?" and "We were hit hard last night." He said the f-word was also painted on the wall.
"It glorifies the gang culture, weapons and the destruction of property," Mackey said.
A graffiti mural painted on the wall depicts a "bomb" scene in which artists spray-painted their names in large, abstract letters. The bold artwork stands out among the old, colorless surroundings.
Any vulgar language observed by the police several weeks ago had been removed last week.
Another wall also contains names painted in diferent colors. Robert Castillo painted his artist name, Sign, in bright hues of blue next to Trus, a name painted in emerald and teal green.
Mayor Eddie Cortez, who’s met with the artists before, said he values their artwork. But it shouldn’t contain vulgar language or drawings that offend people, he said.
"These boys are capable, and they are very good artists," Cortez said of the art he’s seen done by them. "We should be able to allow their art if our city ordinance allows it and it’s done in good taste."
Cortez said he’d even be willing to connect Castillo and his friends with property owners who want murals on their business walls.
Fred Castañeda, 23, a graphic designer who’s also spray-painted on the wall, said their critics dislike their artwork because they don’t understand it or think it’s gang-related. Castañeda he and his friends aren’t gang members.
"You get an idea and you put it on the wall," Castañeda said. "Instead of putting it on canvas or paper, you put it on the wall."
Castañeda and his friends have painted murals at La Cabaña Restaurant on Holt Avenue and at the Pomona Beautification Day in 1993 at Fairplex.
Hoelzle said the police told him he could obtain a permit to have a mural on his propety from the city’s Planning Department.
But City Planner Dennis Mackay said the city’s laws don’t outline what kind of art should be allowed in the city. Although murals have previously existed in the city, a permit has never been required for them, he said.
"Our ordinances now don’t address murals one way or the other," Mackay said. "There’s no way we can issue a permit for it."
Ed Tessier, a downtown developer and planning commissioner, said the city will establish a sub-committee in December to deal with the controversial question: "What is public art?"
The definition of a mural has also been added to the city’’ sign ordinance, which will be reviewed by the City Council early next year. Art regulations will also be added to the downtown specific plan.
"There needs to be a public discussion about the community standards regarding public art," said Tessier, who plans to sponsor mural projects in the downtown area.
"If an artwork raised security issues or encouraged vandalism in the city, that’s somethingwe’ll need to consider."
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Missing from the article were Mr. Hoelzle’s accounts of police harassment (verbal threats and intimidation) that occurred before these city council meetings were initiated. Mr. Hoelzle was a veteran of World War II, so the artists specifically designed the imagery around the owner. All of the characters wore uniforms from the war, and the lettering was filled with war related imagery (the flags of the Axis powers, war maps/icons, and medals of service and honor). When asked by one of the artist’s about the intimidation Mr. Hoelzle replied "I didn’t fight for this country to be oppressed by the same type of people I was fighting."
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