The University of Oregon is seeing a substantial uptick of vandalism on campus, amounting to $53,000 in cleanup costs within the last six months, according to Campus Planning & Facilities Management structures and support manager Tad Lueck. This price tag for vandalism cleanup averages out to roughly $100,000 over one year.  
Lueck said that when a CPFM member encounters vandalism on campus, they first put in a call ticket log. The call ticket is slated to the right division or crew, and the clean up process depends on the severity of the problem, he said.
“We tend to roll on things that are considered offensive and obscene, so we’re not rolling on everything,” he said. “If somebody writes a statement that’s untoward in some way or another, that’s when we’re going to be called, and we’re going to roll on that as a priority.” 
The clean up process often involves power washers, brushes, soaps and chemicals to remove the graffiti off brick and concrete. Since brick and concrete are porous, it can be difficult to remove all the graffiti from the material. 
Generally, the university does not close down buildings when vandalism occurs. Instead, it closes the vandalized area or allows the crew to clean during off hours. Once the area is clean, the building reopens the formally vandalized area.
Quinn Wilcox, a junior majoring in sports business, said that they feel CPFM is doing a good job of maintenance on campus. 
“I find where I am most at, like Lillis Hall, is usually very clean,” Wilcox said. “Maybe there’s like some poster that shouldn’t be there, but I’ve really [got] no problem with that.”
Lueck said that he doesn’t believe people truly recognize how much it costs to maintain a campus.
“When I run reports, and I see in six months that we spent $53,000 on graffiti, that’s the cost of an employee right there,” Lueck said. “It’s significant, and I don’t think people realize that.”
Lueck said students can report vandalism to work control (CPFM) at 346-2319.

Gallery • 2 Photos

A second stall located in Mckenzie hall is covered in graffiti. Vandalism in campus buildings continues to increase as the end of Spring term approaches. (Kemper Flood/ Emerald)