The Portland Water District has received a flood of messages in support of the graffiti wall at the East End Wastewater Treatment Facility as a challenge mounts to banish painters from the space.
The district’s board of trustees held a brief workshop Monday night to discuss a request from Jay York, a Bayside resident and photographer, to consider banning graffiti painting on the wall and convert it to a mural. The board decided to hold a hearing on the matter early next year.
Public comment was not allowed at the workshop, but in the last week, the trustees received 20 emails and messages about the graffiti wall. Only one – written by York – asked them to shut down the wall.
The rest were from people who want the wall to remain open to artists. Those supporters included Portland City Councilor Belinda Ray and Lin Lisberger, who chairs of the Portland Public Art Committee, as well as residents who use the nearby Eastern Promenade Trail.
In one email, Lucy Sullivan of Sheridan Street said she walks by the wall regularly.
“The area is very clean, the artists are always extremely conscientious, and I think it’s a great example of how a community space can thrive without a lot of rules or intervention,” Sullivan wrote. “It’s always fun to see how it changes from walk to walk, and I think it’s one of the things that makes Portland unique and beloved by those of us who call it home.”
Sarah Cushman of Beckett Street submitted a message on behalf of her family, calling the wall “a real trailside attraction.”
“None of us are graffiti artists, but we look forward to passing it by and seeing its latest evolution on our walks, runs and bicycle commutes,” Cushman wrote. “When artists are painting they always stop politely to let us by and are friendly with our occasional questions. Our 10-year-old daughter thinks it’s really cool – and plenty of other folks walking by them seem to as well.”
York said painters have a negative impact on the area by littering and defacing rocks near the wall.
“It is a failed experiment that by being allowed to exist sends a mixed message to young people about what is allowed in Portland,” York wrote in his email. “I can easily put together a group of Portland property owners who are constantly dealing with illegal graffiti and who feel city leaders have done little to deal with this issue.”
At Monday’s workshop, the audience mostly included members of the news media. Several trustees said they wanted to hear more input from the public.
“If we really want to find out what the public thinks about it, we should maybe just have a public hearing,” Portland trustee James Willey said.
Donna Katsiaficas, the district’s attorney, said the city asked about 15 years ago if graffiti artists could use the 100-foot-long wall. The agreement has never been formalized, and the Portland Water District has only contacted the city once about 10 years ago to complain about discarded paint cans. Katsiaficas said city employees promptly removed the trash.
But in September, the wall became the center of controversy when it was painted with a depiction of Gov. Paul LePage dressed as a member of the Ku Klux Klan. Later in the day, the graffiti was altered to portray the governor wearing Mickey Mouse ears.
Katsiaficas cautioned the board about the legal implications of the debate ahead of them.
“It’s not advisable under the First Amendment to decide that some kinds of art are acceptable on that wall and some kinds are not,” she said. “It’s pretty much an all or nothing. You’re either going to allow art on that wall or not.”
The board did not set a date for the public hearing, but suggested it would be held no earlier than February.
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