Ghetto - it’s the last word you’d want to see written anywhere, let alone in the neighbourhood where you’ve just bought a house.
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Well for Bendick Street residents, they’ve had no choice but to live with it graffitied on a power pole near their homes for the last two months.
Vandals have recently targeted the street’s power poles with spray paint, branding one with “getto” (sic) and another with colours of the Aboriginal flag.
A third power pole on the corner of Bendick and Prospect streets was vandalised on Sunday. A fence was also targeted in the recent attack.
One male resident, who would like to remain anonymous, was so appalled by the damage he contacted Young Shire Council asking for the graffiti to be removed.
But the letters running down the pole still remain as clear as day two months later.
“It’s (the graffiti) disgusting and a disgrace… Why would they do that? You can see it from the street. It looks real messy,” he said.
“We’ve just bought a house here. I mean ‘ghetto’, it’s really bad, especially when we’ve got children and elderly residents living here.”
The man said he just wanted it cleaned up and was forced to call council a number of times but his pleas still went unanswered.
Council’s operations director Dirk Wymer said council did receive the family’s complaint and the matter was referred to a council officer.
However because the power pole was not a council asset but rather Essential Energy’s, he said the graffiti was their responsibility.
“The resident should have been advised to call Essential Energy,” Mr Wymer said.
“Generally they don’t like us touching their assets… fundamentally if you have street light problems, you call Essential Energy. If there is graffiti to a substation or power poles in this case, you call Essential Energy.
“Council doesn’t deal with these.”
As to why the family was never told despite the number of calls made to council, Mr Wymer said the officer who the matter was referred to was “out in the field working” yesterday and was unable to comment.
An Essential Energy spokesperson said they encourage residents to report any incidents of graffiti on its electrical infrastructure, including power poles, by calling 13 23 91.
“Essential Energy warns that any interference or tampering with the power network is dangerous and people risk serious injury, if not their lives,” the spokesperson said.
“Graffiti on electrical infrastructure will be removed by Essential Energy during the course of normal work.”
Under the Graffiti Control Act, marking property can attract fines up to $440, while possessing a graffiti implement with intent to vandalise can attract a fine up to $1100 or six months’ imprisonment.
A person under 18 carrying spray paint cans in public can also attract a $440 fine or six months imprisonment.
