Warrnambool City Council is one of 20 council areas around Victoria to receive a grant to help stamp out graffiti crime and keep public spaces safe and inviting.
Member for Western Victoria, Gayle Tierney announced Warrnambool City Council would receive a grant of $30,000 to tackle vandalism in their neighbourhoods and increase perceptions of public safety.
The grant will support the development of murals and plantings in various sites across Warrnambool East Wave Links Park involving students and at-risk young people from the area to prevent graffiti, improve skills and create social connections through urban art.
Successful recipients are sharing in more than $455,000 in Graffiti Prevention Grants.
Grants were available under two streams, providing funding to help councils develop comprehensive graffiti management strategies in consultation with the community, and for prevention and removal activities such as Crime Prevention Through Environmental Design initiatives, anti-graffiti coatings, vertical gardens and public murals.
Other successful projects include the production of educational materials about ways to remove graffiti, community art workshops, public murals, landscaping and graffiti removal kits.
The Andrews Labor Government has provided more than $2.2 million in grant funding to 111 Graffiti Prevention Grant projects since 2015.
The grants are part of the Victorian Government’s Community Crime Prevention Program, which supports local communities to prevent crime and improve community safety.
Quotes attributable to Member for Western Victoria, Gayle Tierney MP
“Graffiti can have such a negative effect on how a neighbourhood is perceived and is costly for councils, businesses and residents to prevent and remove.”
“I would like to congratulate the Warrnambool City Council for taking a proactive approach to help prevent illegal tagging and vandalism.”
“By teaching young children about the impacts illegal graffiti has in their own communities and by investing in murals, green walls and other projects, we can tackle graffiti at a local level.”