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Graffiti Ordinance Section 1007:00 Section 1007:00. Findings and Purpose. It is the purpose of this ordinance to help prevent the spread of graffiti vandalism and to establish a program for the removal of graffiti from public and private property. The Council finds that graffiti is a public nuisance and that its presence and proliferation detracts from property values and has an overall negative impact upon the City. Graffiti vandalism has been recognized to substantially contribute to the spread of gang activity, violence, crime and deterioration of property values. Unless the City acts to remove graffiti from public and private property, the graffiti tends to remain. Other properties then become the target of graffiti, and entire neighborhoods are affected and become less desirable places in which to be, all to the detriment of the city. Section 1007:05. Definitions. Subd. 1. “Graffiti” means any unauthorized inscription, work, figure, painting or other defacement that is written, marked, etched, scratched, sprayed, drawn, painted, or engraved on or otherwise affixed to any surface of public or private property by any graffiti implement, to the extent that the graffiti was not authorized in advance by the owner or occupant of the property, or despite advance authorization, is otherwise deemed a public nuisance by the City Council. Subd. 2. “Graffiti Implement” means any paint, aerosol or pressurized containers of paint, indelible broad tipped markers, paint stick, etching equipment or any other device capable of scarring or leaving a visible mark on any natural or manmade surface. A paint stick is further defined as any device containing a solid form or paint or other similar substance capable of being applied to a surface by pressure. Subd. 3. “Responsible Party” means an owner, legal occupant or an entity or person acting as an agent for an owner by agreement, which has authority over the real property or is responsible for the property’s maintenance or management. Irrespective of any arrangement to the contrary with any other party, each property owner shall always be a responsible party for the purposes of this section. There may be more than one responsible party for a particular property. Section 1007:10. Prohibited Acts. The following acts constitute graffiti vandalism. Subd. 1. It is unlawful for any person to intentionally place or apply, or attempt to place or apply, graffiti on any surface of a structure, fixture or object located on public or private real property within the city without the advance authorization of a responsible party for the property. This subdivision applies to permanent, temporary or moveable structures or objects such as vehicles and railroad cars.